Legend of Zelda: Curse of the Mooncat
by Kiki O'Loplop
Summary: After Ganondorf is defeated, Link has trouble fitting into castle life. He thinks his break comes when he's sent to fetch an ambassador. Little does he know, his troubles are starting all over again.
1. Good Intentions That Backfire

Under a tree, inside a castle's walls, in a beautiful little country, sat a boy who felt trapped. Not physically, but not quite emotionally either. He had been free before, free to roam on his own time and do what he pleased. But now he'd been forced into pointless training. "What a promising child," they had said. "What spirit!"

They knew nothing of the horrors he had faced. He often thought they would have wet themselves if they knew. But regardless, they just didn't know. And so, they doted on him like some innocent child, when in fact he'd probably killed more than the entire Council combined! But that's beside the point.

_I'm a poor, miserable, misunderstood man_, he thought glumly. _I'm going to be taught things I already know for the next four years. What a waste of time!_ He glanced back down at the book that lay in his lap; The Code of Knighthood. _What a waste of paper_...

"Liiink! Hey Link!" The boy glanced up, and cracked a smile. If there was anything that never failed to depress him, it was his studies. And if there was anything that could make him gay again, it was Zelda. She was like him in every aspect, from age to personality, likes to dislikes. Except that she was royalty and therefore Link wasn't suppose to spend time with her. He was still a peasant, after all, and uncivilized. But that never stopped her from visiting him.

"Hey Zel, what's up?" She flopped down next to him, totally disregarding the fact that she would probably get grass stains all over her butt.

"Oh, nothing of great interest. Father called a meeting this morning and hasn't shown his face since. Not even to take lunch! I've been bored almost to tears." She pouted, batting her eyelashes at him.

"So... what do you want me to do about it?" he asked, already half knowing the answer.

Zelda leaned over next to him, her face so close he could feel her breath, and whispered, "Take me to see the fairies, my knight-in-shining-armor!."

Link tossed his book aside, laughing. "Better not let your pops hear you talking like that. He'll lock you up."

They both stood, Zelda attempting to smooth out the wrinkles of her dress. Then they proceeded to their secret escape route. It was door in the rampart wall that was hardly used for anything, probably because hardly anyone knew it was there. The rear wall of the Gardens Picturesque (for those of noble families, or as in Link's case, those striving for knighthood) was covered in a thick, lush ivy. Underneath the stairs leading up to the ramparts' top was the thickest growth. Hidden under this ivy resided their door. Sometimes Link would pray to the Goddesses for a drought just so it would be easier to get the darn thing open.

Once through the door, it was a short hike across a field ripe with grains. Harvest season was almost upon them. This would be the first harvest that Link was not to help with. It was his tutor's way of making him civilized. After that, they were in the Lost Woods. Most people got lost in this forest, hence the name, but Link had traveled its winding paths so many times he practically didn't have to think to find his way.

In no time, they arrived at a familiar little hovel deep within the woods. Upon seeing their friend, eight fairies fluttered out. They had come to know and love Zelda as well, who delighted in their company. They told her about their little daily adventures, and then they begged Link to tell them the story of how he first was lost in the woods. On this occasion, like most others, Link consented. So he sat on his stump, and Zelda sat in the rustling leaves with the fairies piled in her lap, hanging on her shoulders, and lounging on her head.

Several hours were passed in this manner. When the sun started to set, Zelda decided they should probably head back. So they bid their friends farewell and started home. "So, did you have fun?" Link asked. Zelda glanced up at him. She was no longer smiling and laughing. "I think the more important question is whether you had fun."

This took Link by surprise. "W-what? I thought you wanted to get away for awhile. Wasn't that why you..."

But Link knew it wasn't. Zelda sighed and took his arm, looking up at him. "Oh Link, I hate to see you so depressed. When you came back after... after everything, you had changed so much from the little boy who had rescued me from Agahnim. You had truly grown into yourself. Being a knight, and therefore one of my guardians, even if Father doesn't see it that way, is probably a good use of your talents. Not the best, but a good choice. But getting there.. ! You're just not made for schedules and politics. You're a free spirit. Father thinks you act the way you do because you're just a child. But you're not. And neither am I. We were forced to grow up, weren't we? They just don't see it." She looked away, sniffling a little.

Link pulled her back. "You're right. They don't see it. But that's not gonna stop me, and it shouldn't stop you either. If I fought that monster Ganondorf and won, I can tough out a few years of tedious, pretentious rules."

Zelda looked back up him. "I just worry about you. I don't want you to change anymore, I like you just the way you are." Link smiled. "Well I give you permission to kick me then if that happens, okay?"

By this time, they'd reached the ramparts. They let themselves in by their secret door and sneaked across the garden. Link was about to bid Zelda goodnight when a door in the castle wall slammed open, spilling light out across the lawn. "Your Majesty, I've found her!!" The guard rushed forward, shoved Link aside, and scooped Zelda up, rushing her back into the castle.

The hallway was packed with guards, both regular and elite. The King stood in their midst, his face pale with worry. "Oh Zelda, my darling, are you are alright? Where have you been? I've been so worried! How on earth did you escape that man?" While Zelda was being set down, and set upon by her father, Link squeezed into the hallway, curious about what was going on.

"What man?"

"Why, the one who destroyed your room!"

"I wasn't attacked by anyone, Father. I'm fine."

"How could you be, you're life was in danger!"

"I don't know what you're talking about!"

"Then you weren't in the castle. We've been searching for you, and him, for the past three hours! Where were you?"

"I was with Link."

"With Link! I told you not to spend time with that boy."

"Well, if my life had been in danger, he would have been there to defend me, right?"

"That's beside the point. What was he doing with you?"

"We were in the forest, I asked him to-."

"WHAT!? You went _outside_ the ramparts? LINK!!!"

Link cringed as his name was yelled. Everyone turned to stare at him with angry faces. King Daphnes face had gone from pale to tomato red in the blink of an eye. "Yes, Your Majesty?" Link asked meekly. He probably looked scared. And he should have been. He was about to be blamed for the Princess' disappearance, even though it seemed to have kept her safe. That was as good as kidnapping.

The King opened his mouth, but no words came out. He stood there, fuming. Link just looked up at him expectantly. Finally he managed to say, "Go. Go back to your quarters and stay there. GO." Link didn't need to be told twice. He scurried out of the hallway, back across the lawn towards the squire dormitories. He slipped inside, running down the hallway to his room. The other squires chased after him, trying to find out what had happened.

As Link lay on his bed, it occurred to him that he had suddenly become the whipping boy. _Maybe I won't have to endure four years of training after all._

* * *

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	2. About That Man

Try as he might, Link could not sleep. He kept thinking about what Daphnes had said. "_How on earth did you escape that man?" What man? And had the guards caught him? Or was he still at large?_

_ Oh screw this._ He slid out of bed, put on some clothes and crept silently down the hall and outside. Standing in the moonlight, he pulled his cloak tighter around himself. It was a chilly, calm night. Then he set off across the courtyard, towards the castle. He had to dodge a few guards who were wondering around, but it wasn't like he'd never done _that_ before. Once he got to the castle, he slipped in a side door, went down a hall, up a staircase, and around a few corners until he reached Zelda's room. _Oh man, if I get caught, I'm so screwed. I don't even think Zelda would forgive me for stalking her._

The guards would be coming back down the hall any minute. He tried the door. Locked. _Duh! Of course it's locked!_ Quickly, he pulled out a small knife and set to work on the lock. After what seemed like an eternity, the lock clicked. Link slipped inside, locking the door after himself.

The room was dark, save for a single candle that burned over next to the window. Link moved over there first. The window was closed and locked. Then he made his way around the room, looking in all the nooks and crannies, opening all the chests and wardrobes. He was careful to stay away from Zelda's massive four-poster bed, lest he should wake her.

Finally, he was standing in front of the last wardrobe. _Why does one person need so many clothes?_ As he reached out to open it, he heard Zelda stirring behind him. Quickly, he dove towards her bed, trying to make as little noise as possible, and tucked himself under it.

She sat up. "Link?" she whispered hesitantly. _Oh great._ Link sighed, hearing Zelda shift around in her bed until her head appeared hanging upside-down in front of him. "Oh, so it is you. And just what exactly are you doing sneaking around in my room in the middle of the night?

He blinked back at her. "Making sure everything's safe, obviously."

Zelda snorted. "Yet _obviously_ that's what the guards are doing." Link frowned at her, then pulled himself out from under the bed. Zelda sat up and watched as he sat on the floor by the wardrobe.

"Just 'cause I can't see you doesn't mean I can't worry about you."

Zelda opened her mouth to retort but stopped. Even before she yelled, Link knew what he'd been looking for was standing behind him. _Why didn't I check the damn wardrobe?!_

Link turned and sprang backwards in one fluid movement, drawing his sword. The attacker wasted no time. He lunged forward, ready to stab. Link parried the move, throwing the attack upward and away. Almost instantly, he kicked out hard and felt his foot collide with the man's hip. There was an audible crunching sound as something broke. The man stepped back, then screamed. He fell back to the floor, writhing in pain.

Then the door flew open and light flooded the room. Guards ran forward brandishing swords and torches. But paused at the strange sight before them.

Link looked back at the man, now clearly able to see what was happening. The clothes covering his hip were completely gone and Link could see the skin beneath was burning. Scattered on the floor around him were fragments of pottery. Link shuddered with understanding.

The guards stepped forward and grabbed the man, who was stilling screaming in pain, and dragged him from the room. The Captain watched as they left, then turned to Link. "Tell me what happened."

Link, who was used to giving reports, quickly told the Captain of how he had been roaming around the grounds (looking for the threat), eventually ended up in Zelda's room, was searching the place when the attacker made himself known, and finally of his brief battle.

The Captain frowned. "So you didn't actually do anything to him?"

Link shook his head. "Not intentionally," he said, bending over and carefully picking up a piece of ceramic. "But when I kicked him, I must have broken a bottle of acid that he probably intended to use against, uh, _guards_."

The Captain squinted at Link for a moment before understanding what he hadn't said. _Not against guards, but the Princess. And it wasn't meant to kill but to mutilate._ "His Majesty may want to hear that from you personally. Stay here." Then the Captain turned and left the room.

Link glanced back at Zelda. She was still sitting on her bed. He walked over and sat down next to her. "Are you alright?"

She blinked. "That was all so sudden. To think if you hadn't been here..."

Link shrugged. "I'd rather not, actually."

Zelda glared at him. "You know what I mean!"

They fell silent for a moment. Then the Captain poked his head in. "Link, you can go back to your quarters. As for Your Highness, if you would come with me, you shall pick a different room to spend the remainder of the night in." Zelda gave Link a look as she got up and followed the Captain. Then Link, too, got up and left.

‡

The following morning Link found a letter laying at his bedside. It was addressed to him, in curly gold letters. He tore it open.

Squire Link, I would like to thank you for your assistance last night. Since you helped apprehend the fiend, I think you have a right to know what became of him. He would not tell us who sent him, only that his master has more agents to send, that they will come, and that they are to finish what he started. What exactly that is, beyond harming our Princess, I cannot say.

I have come to the conclusion that our long time enemy, Sano, probably has something to do with this. I have already sent word to them that I would wish to speak personally with their ambassador. As such, someone needs to escort them here. I have appointed this task to you and one other, for various reasons. You leave tomorrow.

King of all Hyrule, Daphnes

Link stared, dumbfounded, at the parchment. _You've _got_ to be kidding! Of all the consequences for being too buddy-buddy with Zelda, this is certainly not what I–_

Someone knocked on his door. Still staring at the parchment, Link called for them to come in. The door opened. "Humph." Link looked up. Standing before him was an _elf._ A child by their standards, but an elf none-the-less. _This day just gets weirder and weirder_.

The elf sighed. "Good morning, Link. I trust you slept well?"

Link blinked. "Uh, I suppose. And who are you?"

The elf bowed low. "I am Ervandielnar. But you may call me Evan. I came from Sano more than a year ago. Now it is time for me to return."

Link stood, tossing the letter on his bed. "Wait, you don't mean you're coming with _me_? Do you?"

Evan smirked. "I am but a simple monk. I have need of your services," he looked Link up and down, "and you have need of mine. Now I leave you. You have much to do before tomorrow morn." Evan bowed once more, then left.

Link just stood there for a moment. "Well, it seems my adventures aren't over yet."

* * *

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	3. Before Tomorrow

Just as Evan had said, there was much to do. Bags needed packing, food prepared, and weapons polished. In between visits to the village, Link searched for Evan. But the elf was no where to be found; it was almost as if he had disappeared. A room was reserved for a "Mr. Ervnarl" at the Castle Inn, but it looked as though it hadn't even been slept in. Several people claimed to have seen a young monk drifting around town, but none of them could actually remember where he had gone. Link wondered if some sort of magic wasn't at work.

By midday, most of the preparations for the trip, excluding anything to do with Evan, had been made. Link was just finishing eating lunch when someone knocked on his door. Hoping against hope that it was Evan, Link sprang forward and wrenched open the door.

"Oh! Hello Link. I didn't actually expect to find you here. So much for being hard at work."

Link's face fell. "Oh, hi Zelda. I didn't expect to see you either." He stood there, moping. She stood there, a frown creeping over her features.

"Well? Can I come in?" she asked.

Link's head snapped back up. "Oh right! Sorry. Come in." He stood back, holding the door for her. She stepped inside and seated herself on his bed.

Then she squinted at him. "Are you feeling alright? You're acting odd."

Link slumped against the wall. "Just frustrated. I've been looking for someone all morning, but it's like he never existed. I can't even find a trace of him ever being here."

"Well that's unfortunate," she replied, not really paying attention. Then she glanced up at him. "Aren't you leaving tomorrow? Shouldn't you being packing or something?"

Link rolled his eyes. "Oh come on, it's not like it takes me that long to prepare for something like this. It's all routine anyway. I could have done it in my sleep."

"I'd like to see that," she said with a smile.

"So did you just come here to bother me, or was there something else?"

Zelda turned red. "Well, no not really...."

Link, seeing her face, laughed. "Oh right. Then why are you blushing so much?"

The princess, embarrassed by her embarrassment, turned away from Link. "You're not making this easier, you know!"

Link moved over to the bed and sat down next to her. He was still smiling. "Sorry Zel. So what did you want?"

She peered out at him from between her fingers and whispered, "I wanted to say goodbye."

"Oh, well, you didn't need to be all dramatic about it. By Nayru, I'll never understand women." Link shook his head.

Zelda glared up at him. "Link! I'm trying to be serious here! Do you realize the implications of what you're going to do?"

Link hopped off the bed, picked up his sword, and shoved it back into its sheath. "Of course I do," he replied. "But do you realize that almost making war and yet avoiding it at the same time is a specialty of mine?" He struck a dashing pose and grinned daringly at her.

Zelda crossed her arms, unconvinced. "Link I'm trying to explain to you politics, something I know you have no head for. If you march into Sano demanding-"

He held up a finger in her face. "I don't demand anything."

"Fine, _suggesting_ that their ambassador accompany you back to Hyrule for interrogation-" Link held up a finger again, but Zelda beat him to it. "_Fine_! But you get my point. They're not going to be very accommodating. In fact, they may just pretend you never arrived," she threw up her arms, "and throw you in prison!"

Link, finally noticing that Zelda was genuinely distressed, stopped prancing heroically around the room and sat down again. "Zelda, I'll be fine. I fought demons, remember? What was all that talk yesterday about being held back? Well, here's my chance to show your dad that I'm not just some lucky kid. I'll be back before you know it."

Zelda, still slightly angry, glared up at him. "I'll hold you to that." Then she slid off the bed and strolled into the hallway. Link followed her to the door. Before she left she turned around, her faced filled with anxiety. "Take care of yourself Link."

He bowed. "I will, my princess." Then she left.

Link stood there, feeling odd about how that conversation had just gone. _She's being awfully emotional today. I wonder if there was something more she wanted to tell me. Oh well, too late now._ As he closed the door, he saw something out of the corner of his eye. Quickly he turned back, tearing it open. Across the courtyard stood a brown robe. _Evan! I've found you at last!_ Link sprang outside and ran across the courtyard.

Evan stood in front of a nondescript building, seemingly examining the wall. Link skidded to a halt beside him and grabbed his arm. Evan turned his head to stare at him. Link smiled. "At last I've caught you! Do you know I've been looking for you all day?"

Evan blinked. "Yes, I knew. But I had better things to do with my time than humor you with the boring slow details you wanted to discuss. I assure you, all the arrangements on my end have been made."

Link let his arm fall. "Oh. Well you could have at least told me that." Evan turned back to the wall and started examining it again. Link watched for a bit as Evan just stood there. "Okay then, I'll be in my room later tonight if you want to discuss... things." Evan didn't respond, so Link turned and walked back across the courtyard feeling stupid.

For the rest of the day, Link double-checked all of his arrangements and discovered the things he'd forgotten had been taken care of by Evan. _Perhaps the reason I couldn't find him all day was because he was following _me _around_. Towards dusk Link attempted to visit Zelda, but she was busy overseeing preparations for the upcoming Harvest Festival. Feeling slightly dejected he spent the evening sitting in his room, awaiting Evan.

Just after Link had given up hope of talking with him, and was considering turning in for the night, someone knocked on his door. Determined to show better manners, Link sprang up to answer it, and lo and behold it was Evan!

He looked bored, as usual, as he stepped over the threshold. Link pulled up the chair for him to sit on and set himself down on his bed. Evan twiddled his thumbs. "So, you wanted to discuss... things. Just what, exactly?"

Link thought for a moment before answering, "Well, I think this whole situation is kind of odd. For starters, if my letter hadn't mentioned you, I would have thought you were pulling a prank or something."

With a frown, Evan responded, "You take this too lightly."

Link glanced at the door, thinking of Zelda. "I've already been told that once today." Evan was about to comment, but something occurred to Link and he cut him off. "Say, how do you know what my mission is?"

The elf rolled his eyes. "Oh come on. Don't tell me you really think I have nothing to do with your 'mission'." Link opened his mouth, paused, and shut it again. Evan sighed and held his head in his hands. "They assured me you were smarter than this. But after your performance today, I'm starting to doubt your intelligence."

"Excuse me for trying to stay optimistic," Link said, crossing his arms. "Besides, I think I understand better now what's really going on. You haven't been here for a year, you arrived this morning. How my King got word to you so quickly, I can't say, but you certainly are prompt." Link frowned before continuing. "I was hoping they were trusting me, but it seems I was wrong. You're coming with so I don't screw anything up."

If Evan's face wasn't so passive, Link could have sworn he smirked. "If I was all part of your monarchy's scheming, why hide it?"

Link smirked back. "So your people could stay anonymous in the world's dealings, and my public popularity would sky-rocket. Assuming, of course, this goes off without a hitch."

"I commend you, you aren't as stupid as you look." Evan leaned back against the chair.

Link smiled. "It works in my favor."

"But you are not entirely correct. Your king didn't call for me, I came of my own accord. Actually, since we're being so honest with one another, I tracked the mauler here, suspecting him of some sort of mischief." Evan held up his hand as Link's mouth fell open. "Before you suspect me of not doing my civic duty, I want you to know I had no idea how bad it would be. He merely looked starved for attention. Obviously, this is much bigger than I suspected."

"So... what, you suggested someone go pick up the ambassador?"

Evan shook his head. "No, I just interrogated the man. My people shy away from getting tangled up in your politics, remember?"

"And you're going why, exactly?" Link couldn't help but laugh.

Evan leaned forward, all his focus turned towards Link. "Because, after analyzing the situation, I've decided this is probably worse than anyone here could even imagine."

"I don't know, I can imagine quite a lot."

"Again, you're being much too casual." Frowning, he sat back and loudly cleared his throat before continuing. "The point is, I'm going to assess the situation. If it's bad, I call for reinforcements. If it's not, I leave you to your duties."

Link contemplated this for a moment. "So you're not really chaperoning. Well, alright then. I'd appreciate, though, if you'd tell me just what exactly you think is going on."

"Tomorrow. You need your rest now; it's going to be a long trip." Evan stood and bowed, then swept from the room. Link felt cheated.

_But he's right, I should go to bed._ Link glanced out his window. It was pitch black outside. There wasn't even a moon to tinge the ramparts. As Link pulled on his nightshirt, he mentally went over everything he packed. He crawled into bed, wondering if he'd need a telescope.

‡

Link was in a clearing with a big basin of water. He sat on the edge, glancing down into its depths. Then he noticed something moving beneath the surface. No, not something, someone. Their delicate hands were reaching out towards him. Without thinking, he plunged his own hands into the water. Instantly, he was grabbed by a vice-like grip. Link yelped as he was pulled into the basin. He sunk quickly, though fighting desperately to get out. His strength failing, he turned to face his attacker.

It was a little red-headed girl. And she was terrified. She mouthed "help me" just before she faded into the blackness. Link grabbed for her, but she sunk too fast into the blackness. Then it too enveloped him.

‡

Link woke in a cold sweat. He sat up and looked around himself. Pale sunshine fell across his bed, illuminating his room. _It was only a dream_, he told himself. He squinted as he glanced out the window. The sun had just crept over the horizon. He was suppose to leave in an hour.

He yawned and stretched before dragging himself out of bed. Just as he reached for his clothes that hung over the chair, someone knocked on his door. Groggily, he answered it.

"Good morning, Link! You ready to go?"

Link blinked up at him. "No, I just got up. I thought we didn't leave for another hour anyway."

Evan rolled his eyes as he said, "Ever heard of getting a head start? Here, hand me your luggage. I'll go saddle Epona while you get dressed." Link grabbed said bags and handed them to Evan. "Meet me in the stable in 20 minutes."

With that, he walked away. Link stood in his doorway, still digesting what had just happened. _This is going to be a long trip_. He sighed, then closed his door quietly. He turned back to his clothes and pulled off his nightshirt.

"OW!" he yelped and grabbed his left hand in pain. There were five long cuts on it. _That girl.. she scratched me! But it was just a dream..._ Quickly he wrapped his hand, then threw on his clothes rather haphazardly and raced out of the dorm and across the courtyard towards the castle.

Very seldom did Zelda ever translate any of his dreams. Usually they weren't important. Or if they were, they were pretty self-explanatory. But this time his dream had physically affected him. He took the stairs three at a time.

However, when he reached her room she wasn't there. Nor was she outside in the garden or in the dining hall. Link skidded to a halt in front of the castle, panting. He could see Evan leading the horses around from the stable, looking very annoyed. _Oh, for Farore's sake, this is not fair!_ Link sat down right in the middle of the walkway, pulled out some parchment, pen, and ink and began scribbling out his dream. When he finished, he folded it up, scribbled "To Zel" on the front and handed it to the nearest guard, who looked extremely confused.

Just as he sent the man on his way, Evan tapped him on the shoulder. "Enough games already, we should be leaving now. Actually, we should have left yesterday. So come, we're wasting time." He grabbed Link by his tunic and pulled him towards the horses. Link clutched his bandaged hand. _But what does it mean_?

* * *

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	4. Down a Hole

Link quickly discovered that traveling with Evan was akin to being alone, but with some insane drive to get there as fast as physically possible. Evan did not speak. Link's vain attempts at conversation were met with nods or grunts. Evan, happy to finally be on the road, was content to plod along in silence. Utter silence.

_Traveling with a Moblin would be better than this!_ Link thought grudgingly. For almost two weeks they'd plodded along in absolute silence. Link had long since tired of staring at the passing trees and occasional bird. He longed for some excitement, even it was something as trivial as a fork in the road. At last, he got his wish.

It was just after midday. They had just stopped for a quick, silent lunch and were on the way again when a small ball of light shot out of the woods, straight towards Evan's head. He ducked just in time, watching it zoom past. Without a word, he straightened and spurred his horse forward. "Um," Link ventured, "what was that?" Evan turned around, no doubt for a one word answer, but Link never heard it. The ball shot back out of the woods and collided with his head. It hit him with such force it knocked him clean off Epona.

"Oh! I'm so sorry!" squeaked a tiny voice. Link tried to blink away the bright lights that were bouncing around inside his head. But they kept dancing in front of him. "Are you okay, sir?" he heard again. Then suddenly, the light settled on his face, and Link understood. It was a faerie, looking very concerned. "Sir?" she asked again.

Link smiled. "I'm okay," he replied. Then he tried to sit up. The faerie drifted away from his face, her wings a blur as she hovered. Link's head was pounding and his right arm stung. "Yea, I'll be alright. You should watch where you're going though."

The faerie settled in his left shoulder. "I'm soo sorry!!" she almost cried. "It's j-just that my friend Michelle's in trouble and I was looking for help and there's no one around and I panicked and I thought what would happen if I didn't go back and-" Suddenly she stopped and looked up at Link, then over at Evan. Her glow seemed to increase tenfold.

Evan stepped forward, shaking his head. "Oh no, we're not going galavanting off into the forest. I'm sorry Miss Faerie, but we've a schedule to keep. Link, if you're really alright, then we should be off at once. We've wasted enough time here."

The faerie's glow diminished again. She drifted towards the ground, holding her face. Link was sure she was crying. "Come now," he said, with a glare towards Evan. "I'm sure it's not all _that_ imperative that we rush on. Where's your friend? Is she nearby somewhere?"

Evan opened his mouth again to protest, but the faerie was so overjoyed that she buzzed around the heads of them both, yelling 'thank you' in her high, shrill voice. Then she whipped off back the way she had originally come. Link jumped up eagerly and chased after her. Evan, in turn, chased after Link.

"What are you doing? We don't have time for this! COME BACK HERE!!" Link smiled as Evan repeatedly yelled at him. "We won't make the next village in time!! Do you like riding in the dark? You-

"Yes I do!" Link shouted over his shoulder. He could hear Evan fuming behind him.

Suddenly, Link slowed his pace. The faerie was bouncing low above the ground just a few feet in front to him. He could hear her high voice, but couldn't make out what she was saying. Then he heard another voice.

"So where are they? And how do you know they can even help me? Did you tell them what _kind_ of trouble I'm in?" It was a woman's voice, rough but clear. The faerie settled on the ground, saying something back.

Link walked out from behind the trees into the small clearing. He didn't get very far though. Right in front of him was a huge hole. It looked as though someone had dug a well, but never finished it. The faerie was sitting on it's edge. Link peered over the brink into the hole. At the bottom sat the woman.

Another elf.

She was covered in dirt from head to foot. All around the edges were signs of her trying to climb out. But the hole was too deep and too wide to just crawl out of. As he stared down at her, she looked up at him and scoffed.

"Is this him? A boy? Come on Cazsi, when you said you got help, I kind of expected a huntsman or something. Not some little kid." She pulled her hair out of her face and looked pointedly at Link. "Well? Are you going to help or not?"

Link, trying to keep his optimism, smiled down at her. "I think I'm a bit more capable than any huntsman around here. I'll tie a rope to this big tree here and you can walk out." He bent down, swinging his bag off his shoulder, and rummaged through it for his rope.

As he started to tie the rope around the tree, Evan appeared. His face wore a scowl. "You're doing it wrong," he said quietly. "Let me. Since you insisted on wasting time, we might as well do it right." Link stepped back, wondering why Evan was practically whispering. The elf bent down and quickly tied a monstrous knot. When he was done, he stood and said, "I'll be waiting back by the horses when you're done here." Then he turned and strode away. Link shrugged and turned back to the hole.

"Here ya go!" he said cheerfully, tossing the other end of the rope down into the hole. The woman stood gracefully and, grabbing the rope, started to haul herself out. Link grabbed the rope and pulled on it as well. In no time, she was out of the hole. Link was immediately struck by how tall she was.

"Well, I guess you are capable," she stated, looking him up and down. "Thank you for your assistance, Mr.-?"

Link laughed. "I thought I was a boy? No mister, its just Link. Besides, your friend was in such stress, how could I refuse to help?" As if on cue, the faerie flitted to the women's shoulder. "So, what were you doing down there, Miss-?"

Now it was her turn to smile. "Not miss, just Michelle, in your tongue. And this is Cassie. I wasn't down there by choice. I have no idea who dug that hole, but if I ever cross paths with them, they shall certainly get an earful from me!" She scoured at the hole. "Who knows how long I would have been down there if you hadn't happened along." Suddenly she glanced sideways at him. "Speaking of which, what's a boy like yourself doing wandering around such a wood?"

For a moment Link didn't answer. _She was really condescending sitting in the hole, but now that's she up here she's being really sweet. Perhaps she recognizes me, in which case I probably shouldn't tell her where I'm going..._

She obviously saw him turning it over in his mind, for she backed down. "Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to be prying. 'Don't talk to strangers' and all that safety stuff your parents tell you." The elf sort of half chuckled to herself.

Link glanced up at her. "Actually, no. I was just wondering if you knew me."

She was slightly taken aback by this question. "Er, should I?"

"Not necessarily..." Link stared off across the clearing. Then he shook his head. _Oh, what does it matter? As long as she doesn't know why. Besides, she might be heading the same way. That would certainly make the trip more interesting. _"Well, whatever. I'm heading towards Sano, on business you could say."

"Hey! So are we!" chimed Cassie. "Maybe we could all go together. What do ya think, Meechielorya?"

Michelle glanced back at Link. "Well, he's certainly handy in a pinch. And if he's traveling alone-"

"Oh, I'm not." Link interjected. Michelle cocked her head. "No, see there's this other elf going to Sano too. We kind of set out together. But he's not very good company. His name's Ervandielnar."

Michelle instantly balked at the name. "Oh well, if you have company then we shouldn't bother you." Then she turned to Cassie, who looked forlorn. "Well, let's be off then!" And quickly walked, almost running, around the hole and away from Link.

Link stood for a moment, rather confused. _I get the feeling that Evan and Michelle know each other_. He quickly gathered up the rope and, feeling a little forlorn himself, walked back to the horses.

Evan was standing by them, looking as impatient as ever. "Well, took you long enough. Did she fall back in? Or were you just making small talk?" Without waiting for an answer, the elf swung himself up onto the horse. He glanced back at Link, who was still standing on the ground, and clicked his tongue like an old hen. "Come then, let's get a move on."

Link unwillingly pulled himself onto Epona. Without a moment's hesitation, Evan spurred Chester onward. _So he has his own closet full of skeletons. This trip just got a lot colder._

‡

Four pairs of eyes watched as the boy and the elf rode away. As the pair slipped out of sight between the trees, the watchers emerged from hiding. Even standing in plain sight, they were hard to distinguish from the foliage around them.

"The elf must be dealt with," ordered the leader. The other three nodded in agreement.

* * *

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	5. Deception

Zelda awoke feeling stressed. She sat up and squinted around her dimly lit room. The sun was just beginning to peek over the horizon. Zelda got up and, wrapping herself in robes, walked over to the window. Looking down she could see the guards moving methodically around the ramparts. The sweet smell of bread drifted through her open window. The day had started like any other.

She got dressed quickly and bounced down the stairs. The fresh morning air and cloudless sky promised a dry day, perfect for traveling. _Link leaves this morning. It's now or never!_ She reached the last flight of stairs to the courtyard. Through the stain glass windows she could see the squire dorm in the distance.

"Ah, Zelda, good morning!" Zelda stopped and turned around. Suppressing a groan, she smiled tightly at the round man that waddled down the corridor after her.

"Good morning, Benjamin," she politely responded. "How are you this fine day?" It was hard to not simply turn and run away.

As Ben caught up to her, he pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped his brow, breathing heavily. "I've been better. Listen, I'm glad I caught you. I need your help with something."

Zelda's smiled faltered. She glanced anxiously over her shoulder. "Well, that's nice, but can it wait twenty minutes?" When she turned back, Ben looked close to tears.

"Oh please help me, Princess. I've been looking for him all night!" He glanced down at his feet, wringing his handkerchief.

Despite herself, Zelda felt sorry for him. "I'm sure he's around here somewhere. Who have you been looking for?" she asked, taking his huge hand in hers.

He looked back up, tears streaming down his face. "Mr. Scruffy."

Zelda couldn't believe her ears. A cat. He was looking for his cat. She almost refused, but the look on his face, the pure torment, swayed her. "Well let's start in the gardens, shall we?"

She turned away from the courtyard, walking back the way she had come. Ben glanced over his shoulder and squinted. The elf had just left the squire dorms, they'd be leaving soon. Benjamin smirked, then turned back to the Princess and followed her dejectedly down the hall.

‡

They found the cat out by the ramparts. In a tree. _Of course, it can never be easy_. Benjamin would probably die if he tried to climb the tree, so while he ran around looking for a ladder, Zelda tried to talk Mr. Scruffy down.

While the cat hissed and spit at her, Zelda glanced up at the sky. She'd wasted almost twenty minutes. Glaring back at the cat, she vehemently wished it would just drop dead. Then a thought struck her. _Maybe I can knock it out of the tree. Cats fall out of windows all the time and just walk away. It should be fine, right?_

Zelda cast around her for something to throw at the cat. Near the base of the tree she found a good sized rock. Picking it up, she glanced around. Ben wasn't back yet, he'd probably collapsed somewhere from exhaustion. She turned back and, taking careful aim, hurled the rock at Mr. Scruffy. It broke a few branches before it came crashing back down. The cat continued to hiss from the tree. Zelda ran to where the rock fell, picked it up and threw it again. The cat leapt to the side this time, narrowly avoiding the rock. Zelda cursed under her breath, grabbed the rock again and hurled it with all her strength.

Her efforts were rewarded with a loud yowl as the cat flew out of the tree. Unfortunately, it flew right over the ramparts. Zelda sighed. _I have to see this through._ Going to the nearest rampart door, she unlocked it and slipped outside to search for Mr. Scruffy.

‡

Benjamin almost ran down the corridor, mopping his brow as he went. He didn't know how long Zelda would wait for him to come back, but he was sure it wouldn't be long. Finally, he reached her room and threw open the door.

King Daphnes stood inside, watching a group of men sort through all of Zelda's papers and letters. He turned as Ben hurriedly bowed. "Well, how did it go?"

"Well, Your Majesty," he responded huffily. "But I'm concerned that he will search for her before his departure. The cat can't keep her occupied forever."

Daphnes nodded. "Well, take her someplace where he won't find her then." He turned back to the men, watching as they sorted the letters into two piles. Benjamin bowed once more, then quickly left, running back down the hall.

When he reached the tree, however, Zelda wasn't there. And neither was the cat. His heart jumped into his throat. He searched and called, but there was no answer. Just when he was about to make his way toward the dorms, he heard footsteps behind him.

"Hey, Ben, have you seen Zelda around anywhere?" Ben whirled around to face Link. His face almost split into a grin, before he remembered to look concerned. He shrugged and half shook his head. Link frowned, pulling at his bandaged hand before running off again.

Benjamin sighed. _So he didn't find her. Good._ Then he glanced around again. _But where did she go?_

‡

It took Zelda all of two seconds to find the cat. The poor thing had broken a leg when it landed and sat mewing helplessly just on the other side of the wall. Zelda scooped it up in her arms, shushing it. As she turned it to get a better look at it's leg, she noticed a perfect circular patch of fur was missing on it's side. She brushed her fingers over it, remembering where she'd seen this mark before. _This cat's been marked for the butchers._

Then she heard her name. Ben was on the other side of the wall, calling for her. He sounded panicked. Realization dawned on her. _He lied to me. He didn't want me to see Link. This was all a distraction!_ Still holding the cat, she turned towards the woods and ran.

* * *

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	6. A Reason to Follow

As soon as Zelda reached the outer fringes of the forest, she realized how futile it was. _I'm the Princess of Hyrule, I can't just hide in the woods because some fat man kept me from... from kissing him goodbye. _She sat just on the edge of the woods, watching the sun climb higher into the sky. The cat continued to mew pitifully as Zelda thought about everything that had happened. _This mission is going to be the end of Link, I just know it. And I bet my father knew too, that's why he chose him_. Her eyes welled again. _And Link's too naive to see it!_

The cat clawed at her, pulling her out of her thoughts. Zelda glanced down at it and sighed. _Link is resourceful. He might be okay... Besides, what can I do?_ She stood up, shading her eyes from the glaring midday sun. Resigning herself to this fact, she slowly walked back towards the castle.

‡

Trying not to set the entire castle in a panic again, Benjamin enlisted only a few soldiers to assist him. They quietly and casually searched for Zelda. When she didn't turn up after a few hours, Benjamin began wondering if something more sinister had befallen her. And he began to panic again. Keeping her from Link would be a small victory if she was dead.

Ben pulled out his handkerchief and wiped his forehead again. He stood on top of the west ramparts watching as his chosen few assembled empty-handed. Not a man to think outside the box, he couldn't imagine where she could have gone.

"Sir," one of the soldiers said, "perhaps she _left_ the castle. That would explain why she's not here." The others glanced at him, like this was obvious. But Benjamin just scoffed.

"Why would she leave the castle without Link? That makes no sense."

"Maybe she went looking for him?"

"Preposterous." Benjamin glared at the soldier, daring him to contradict. The man just shrugged his shoulders. "Obviously," Ben continued, "you didn't search hard enough. She has to be here somewhere. I want you to start your search again. I'm going to report our progress to His Majesty."

As the men turned and trudged back down to the castle lawns, the opinionated soldier remarked quietly to his comrades, "If the King doesn't take his head, then I'm a cucoo."

‡

Zelda hid in the shadow cast by the ramparts, waiting for the guards to pass by. The cat, seeming to sense the need for silence, didn't utter a single sound. The princess was grateful. After what happened last time she was caught leaving the castle, she figured she'd be under house-arrest if she was found out now.

Finally she saw the break in the guard she was waiting for. Carefully and quietly, she worked the lock with a hair pin. It clicked softly and the door swung open with a squeak. Zelda held her breath as she opened the door further and slipped through. Once on the other side, she breathed a sigh of relief. _Now to dispose of this cat_. She glanced down at the poor creature, which mewed pathetically back up at her. Despite all the trouble this cat put her through, she now knew that one of her father's trusted men had manipulated her. In some sense, she owed the cat.

Gathering her filthy skirts, she briskly crossed the lawn to the castle and began making her way to her room. First things first, she was going to give Mr. Scruffy some medical attention. But when she reached her room, she immediately noticed the uncommon neatness of everything. After setting the cat down on her bed, she moved over to her writing desk. _Somebody's gone through my things!_ Immediately, she thought of the man that had tried to kill her. Even though he was dead, she was sure that more men would be on their way to finish the job. But as she opened the drawers and sifted through the letters, notes, and memos, she realized that it couldn't have been an assassin. A killer wouldn't have taken the time to organize everything. Or bothered to take everything she'd received from Link. Almost frantically, she searched through every drawer. Not one of them contained a single letter from Link. And he'd written dozens.

She flopped back onto the floor in frustration. _Benjamin! Your treachery runs deeper than I thought. But not for long._ Forgetting completely about the cat, Zelda jumped to her feet and to the door with the intent of going straight to her father. But as she opened the door, she heard the familiar running and panting of none other than Benjamin.

Slowly she eased the door almost closed, cracking it open just enough to see him practically collapse in the hall from exhaustion. Then a voice spoke.

"Well? Have you found her yet?" _That's my father!_ Zelda shifted slightly, trying to get a better view.

Benjamin shook his head from where he panted, not even bothering to attempt to look up. "No," he wheezed, "we haven't. I have no idea where she is. We've searched the entire castle and grounds at least 3 times already. I sent the men on another sweep, but I'm not hopeful."

"Hmph." Zelda could hear the distain in his voice. "I thought you were sure Link didn't find her."

"I am!" Ben glanced up at the King with a look of panic in his eye. "He hadn't seen her when I'd met him, and I haven't seen her since then. Wherever she disappeared to, she left before Link. But like I said, I don't know where that is."

Daphnes chuckled. "Don't sweat it. If she's fine, then this worked out for the better. The evidence against Link is still being placed. By the time she does return, all of Hyrule will believe he was behind the attempts at her life."

Zelda couldn't believe what she'd just heard. _What is my father doing? Does he really hate Link enough to make him an outlaw?_

"And he'll never be able to return to tell her otherwise." Ben smiled crookedly as he stood, finally catching his breath. "They left one hour after he, just as you ordered. He'll be dead within the week."

The princess had a hard time concealing her gasp of surprise. Both Daphnes and Ben glanced at her door as she slid away from it. She squeezed her eyes shut, hoping it was all a dream.

"Well," she heard her father say, "She'll turn up. If she followed Link, our assassins will pick her up. If not, then at worst she's hiding in the woods. Keep searching, but keep it low key. I don't want to disturbed the people."

Both men exchanged short words of parting, then presumably went their separate ways. Zelda remained against the wall trying to wrap her head around what she just heard. _It doesn't seem possible. My King, my own father, murdering Hyrule's hero. My Link. Why?_

Mr. Scruffy mewed softly from the bed. Zelda opened her eyes and looked sadly at it. It mewed again, more pitifully this time. Sighing, Zelda got to her feet and took the bandages from her closet. She sat next to the cat and began to wrap it's leg.

"What am I going to do?" she asked the cat. It pawed at her hands. "I suppose Link can take care of himself. And me, for that matter, but that's not the point. My own country is turning on it's savior, and for what?"

Suddenly the cat twisted towards the door and hissed. Zelda shushed it, wondering what it was hissing at. Then someone knocked on the door, nearly making Zelda jump.

Without waiting for response, a guard opened the door. He started when he saw Zelda sitting there. Quickly he bowed. "My apologies, Your Highness. I didn't mean to barge in, I just thought-" Zelda raised her hand to stop him.

"It's alright. What do you need?"

The guard straightened and handed her a piece of parchment. "I was instructed to deliver this to you. I apologize if it's late, I searched for you all morning."

Zelda stared in astonishment at the paper. She recognized the scratchy handwriting on the front. "Oh, no no, it's quite alright. Thank you." She waved him out. He bowed once more, then turned and left, closing the door behind him as he went. Zelda unfolded the parchment and quickly read the note.

Whatever confidence she held for Link's well-being had just flown out the window. The dream he had written out for her to interpret told her one thing quite plainly; Link was going to die.

Zelda crumpled the paper in her hand, forming a plan already. _If my father's assassins don't get him, this girl will lead him into something much worse. I have to at least warn him!_

* * *

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	7. A Confrontation

Twenty minutes here, another three there... and then two hours in the witch's shop. Link sat outside, waiting impatiently for Evan to hurry up. _I can't stand this anymore. He complains that _I'm _slow!_ Link watched, without really seeing, people bustle up and down the surprisingly crowded streets of the little village. Link vaguely wondered how so many people could be here, and yet not live here. Then again, Spikesville, a village known for it's slow and torturous death sentences, wasn't exactly a gorgeous place. _I wonder how much it would cost to get Evan convicted of something..._

As Link sat and moped, he gradually became aware of distant music. Peering down the street, he saw a girl dancing, singing, and playing a tambourine. The coins sewn to her skirts jingled and clanged as her short hair bounced by her round ears. She was surprisingly clean for a gypsy, even cleaner than most of the shoppers that were following her. Link watched with mild interest as she made her way down the street.

As she neared where he sat, she spotted him. Her expression changed to one of empathy. She stopped singing and bounced over to where he sat. He scooted away slightly, not really wanting to be the subject of this woman's pity.

"Oh you poor thing, left in the streets all by yourself!" she remarked. "Are you waiting for someone?" She sat down next to him. The crowd that was following her, seeing that she was done performing, drifted away to look at other things they couldn't have either.

Realizing that she wasn't just going to go away, Link decided he might as well humor her. "Yes. My friend is shopping in there," he jabbed his thumb over his shoulder, "and he's taking forever."

The gypsy girl tried not to smile, but was failing miserably. "Well, some people do enjoy the supernatural side of life. I'm Angie by the way." She thrust her hand out.

Link shook it warily. "I'm Link. So why exactly are you picking on me?"

The smile she was trying to hide flared across her face. "I'm not picking on you! You just looked like you could use some company. Are you hungry? I could buy something to eat if you wanted."

"Okay..." If he hadn't been suspicious before, he sure was now.

"Great! Let's go to this inn that I know of. It's a bit of a walk from here, but it's worth it. Trust me." She grabbed his hand and hauled him to his feet. Then, with her skirts clinking and her tambourine jingling, she skipped off down the street, dragging Link behind.

_What have I gotten myself into?_

‡

Inside the dingy shop, Evan had no concept of time. It was only after he'd argued with the owner about which potion was better for curing sleep apnea, decided on one, purchased it, and walked outside did he realize that almost three hours had passed. He glanced around for Link, intent upon apologizing immediately. But he found he couldn't find him. _Logic says he would have stayed somewhere close by... So where did he get off to this time?_

He spotted an old man slumped across the street, whom he recalled had been there when he'd first entered the witch's shop. Quickly he strode across the street and stood directly in front of the man, who didn't look up.

"Ahem," Evan cleared his throat. He waited for the man to respond, but still he didn't even look up. So Evan continued. "There was a boy across the street just there clad in green. You wouldn't have happened to have seen what became of him, would you?"

Finally the old man looked up. Evan jumped back in surprise, because this old man was neither old nor a man.

Michelle peered out at him from under the dirty hood. "Hello Ervandielnar. I didn't mean to frighten you like that, but there's something I think you should know."

Evan shook his head and stepped back. "Nothing you can say to me would mean anything." He turned and began to walk away.

Michelle rolled her eyes. "No, you nimwit! It's about you and Link." Evan stopped and turned back. "I didn't see where he went," she continued, more quietly now, "because I was too busy watching the four people that are stalking the two of you."

"What?!" Evan demanded. He turned fully back to face her, but kept his distance.

"Yes, you have acquired stalkers," she repeated. "They're very good if you didn't even notice them. I think they mean Link harm. I've been waiting here for you finally come out of that store so I could tell you. But it's been so long since he left that I almost think it's too late."

Evan stood still for a moment, despair washing over him. Then he turned to her. "You'll help me find him, won't you?"

"For his sake, yes," Michelle replied.

‡

As Link was dragged past shop and house, he wondered why an inn would be so far from the main road. It made no sense really, unless it was a place for the townfolk to gather. But then it wouldn't really be an inn would it...

Suddenly Angie stopped dead in her tracks. She twirled around to face him. Link was shocked. The smile, the bounces, they were all gone. She looked grave and dismayed.

"Angie what-?" Link began, but she cut him off.

"I'm sorry, I really am. You're much nicer than I thought you would be... But I don't really have a choice, you see. Please forgive me." She stepped away from him, holding back tears.

Link barely had a second to process what she was talking about before it was happening to him. They came at him from all sides with sweeping blades. Only Link's instincts saved his life in that first moment. He ducked and rolled out from under them. With lightening speed they followed as Link jumped to his feet and drew his sword. Then his left knee gave out and he toppled sideways. He landed hard on the ground and threw up his sword as the first assassin reached him and slashed downward. He kicked out with the right leg and caught the other's knee, then kicked off with all his strength. The momentum painfully rolled him over and knocked the first into the second. But the third and fourth were already barreling down on him. With nothing to do but cringe, Link could feel time slow down just before the fatal blow. He squeezed his eyes shut.

But it never came. Link felt his sword being wrenched from his grasp. He looked up in time to see Evan flying over him, holding the Master Sword. _He moves so fast!_ He turned farther and saw a blur of blue flying towards the other two. _And when did Michelle get here? _He heard the surprised gasp of his attackers as it became their turn to fight for their life.

From where he lay, ignoring the pain in his left knee, Link tried to watch as Evan and Michelle swiftly and silently dealt with the assassins. It was over so fast that there really wasn't much to see. Finally Michelle stood with her blade against the neck of the last one. Evan stood next to her, glaring down at the man.

"Kill me! I will tell you nothing, elf," the man spat at Evan.

Evan leaned closer to him. "Oh, but you already have," he said quietly. "But now you're going to tell us _why_ a Hylian would seek to kill his hero."

Link sat up sharply. "Wait, WHAT!?"

The man smirked at Link. "Foolish boy." Then he turned back to Evan. "As I already stated, I will tell you nothing." Then he closed his eyes, preparing for the end.

"You forget where we are," Evan stated. Michelle gave him a disapproving look.

* * *

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	8. In Need

Link sat outside another non-descript building for another two hours. This time he had company though. Michelle was crouched next to him in a pool of blood, attempting to bandage his knee. Link gritted his teeth as she cursed in frustration. "So why won't it stop bleeding again?"

"Because," she sighed, "they were using poisoned blades. I don't know what the poison is, but it's keeping your blood from clotting." She glanced up at him, studying his face. "The weird part is that you don't seem to be losing _as much_ blood as you should be."

Link couldn't help but smile. "Obviously, I have fate on my side."

"Obviously," she echoed as she dug in her bag for a different tonic that might help.

Just then, the front door swung open and Evan emerged. The hem of his robe was stained dark. He looked grim, but satisfied. "Well, I have good news and bad news," he announced. "The good news is that I finally got him to spill his guts. Rather literally." Michelle wrinkled her nose at his choice of words. "The bad news is that it seems he was once a captain in the Hylian Royal Guard, specifically chosen by the Hylian king to kill Link."

Link's eyes widened in shock. "By Daphnes? You mean my king is trying to kill me? The Hero of Hyrule? Who saved his butt and his daughter's butt?" Link folded his arms across his chest. "What an ungrateful jerk."

Evan raised an eyebrow. "Well, I suppose that's one way of putting it. But the problem still stands; your king wants you dead. As I suspected from the beginning, this 'diplomatic' mission of yours was really just a way of making you vulnerable."

"Wait, as you suspected before?" Michelle interrupted. "You mean you _knew_ this was going to happen? Why didn't you tell him?!" she shouted, pointing at Link.

"Well I didn't see you rushing to our side when you first learned we were being hunted," Evan snapped back. Link raised his hand to make a point, but was cut off.

"I was trying not to jump to any conclusions!" Michelle shouted. "And if you had come out of that damn shop sooner then maybe Link's leg wouldn't be bleeding indefinitely!"

Evan's jaw dropped. "I only had his best interests at heart. If I had known there was imminent danger, I would have left immediately! Why didn't you just come inside and get me?"

Michelle glared at him. "Because that witch would have attacked me if I set foot inside, that's why. I figured that like any normal person, it would take less time to wait for you than to deal with her, because she hates my very existence. Obviously I was wrong, because like always, you dilly-dally when time is crucial!!" Evan looked like he was going to hit Michelle, who looked like she might just cut him.

"SHUT UP!!" Link yelled, causing them both to jump and stare at him. "Ok, so you hate each other, I get it. But can you please not argue about things that are said and done? Yes, it could have been better, but it also could have been much worse. For instance, I could be dead. But I'm not, I'm just dying." He turned to Michelle, who glanced at his knee with a remorseful expression. "What happened to Cassie? I'm pretty sure she could help me." Evan started to say something, but Link stopped him with a look.

"She's... gone." Michelle said softly. Then she looked up and caught the expression on his face. "No! Not like that, she went east. She said she had to go help someone, something about it being seasonal. I don't really know. I would have asked her stay a couple more days if I had known someone was going to be an idiot." She glared at Evan.

"At any rate, it's no good." Evan stated, ignoring her. "We can't follow her over the mountains with Link in this condition, never mind the fact that even if we had wings of our own, we'd never find her. We need another course of action."

Silence settled over them as they pondered this. Link, who was starting to feel decidedly light-headed, was finding it difficult to concentrate. As a result, Michelle had to say his name three times before he realized she was talking to him. "I guess we'll have to look for an experienced healer."

‡

With no other apparent options, they headed for the actual inn by the main road. At least there Link could lay in relative comfort and save his strength. But when they arrived, there seemed to be some sort of trouble. A large throng of people had gathered outside of the inn. Link, from Evan's arms, strained to see what was happening.

"NO! You _cannot help this woman_!" someone was shouting. "She is _my_ property, and if she is going to disobey me, then she will suffer the consequences!!"

"But it will kill her," answered a sweet, but pleading voice. "do you not understand this?" Evan and Michelle's ears pricked up. They exchanged a questioning look.

Link tugged at Evan's sleeve. "What is it? What's going on?"

"That's an elf." he murmured. "And what's more, I believe she is a healer by the sounds of this argument. Our immediate troubles may be at an end." Link turned back to the crowd as Michelle started to shove her way through them.

The man was shouting again. "I WILL NOT HAVE IT!" He was richly dressed. Behind him stood another man, obviously in waiting.

The woman, who _was_ an elf, was still pleading. "But she'll die! At least realize she will be of no use this way." She pointed to a girl lying between them, who was curled up in a tattered cloak and shaking. The man stepped over her quaking form and drew himself up to his full height. He still wasn't as tall as the elf but he was definitely thicker around the middle.

"You have no authority here," he said threateningly. "She's _mine!_" He took another step forward, as if to do something violent.

Evan spoke up just then. "Can you prove that?"

The man turned sharply to face him. "And just who do you think you are?" he asked, eyeing the three of them. He looked fierce, as if he was used to bullying others to get his way. But the sight of two more elves seemed to unnerve him. He backed away from the healer and glanced uncertainly around himself, as if seeing the gathered crowd for the first time.

"I am Ervandielnar, disciple of Nayru. And I have need of this woman's services," he said, nodding his head towards the elf. "If you are done wasting time, either let her heal this girl or be on your way." Link thought the look on Evan's face was only slightly less than murderous.

Obviously the man did too, for he backed down. "She's always been useless anyway," he said as he looked down at the girl with scorn. Then, with attendee in tow, he swirled his expensive cloak and hurriedly pushed his way out of the crowd.

Immediately the elf healer scooped up the girl and struggled to carry her inside. Michelle rushed to her aid, Evan following with Link, and the five of them entered the dingy inn. The innkeeper had a cleared table ready with towels and a bowl of hot water. The healer laid the girl down on it and began to unwrap her from her cloak. Evan gently set Link in a nearby chair and was about to say something when the innkeeper, the healer, and Michelle all gasped. Evan stepped back and gasped as well, giving Link a view of the girl.

He was immediately struck by how filthy she was. But the next thing he noticed was a pair of odd black things sticking out of the top of her head. Another black something was wrapped around her left leg. Her face and arms were covered in claw marks, as if she'd been attacked by a wild dog.

The healer leaned over her with a damp towel and wiped away some of the grime on her face. "I've never seen someone with cat ears before. This is most peculiar." The elf then laid her hands on the cuts and began to heal them via magic.

"How does that happen?" Michelle asked, watching as the girl stopped shaking.

The elf finished her work and said, "I don't know. Maybe she can tell us." She turned to the innkeeper. "Would get some drinking water please?" As he rushed off, she turned to Link. "And what can I do for you, young sir? Certainly you don't need my help for your knee, with such excellent company."

Link felt as if he was in a haze. "No. Er, wait, I mean yes. Yes, I do. Cause it won't stop.. um.. bleeding." The elf frowned as he said this and turned to Evan.

"It's true. He was attacked over two hours ago and the wound won't heal," Evan explained. "His attackers were using some kind of poison. Meechielorya tried everything within her power."

The healer shook her head as she turned back to Link and began unwrapping his knee. "I'll have to say this has been the most interesting of days." Link winced as she put her hands on his open wound and began to heal it. She frowned several times and had to stop to think but eventually she managed to undo the poison. As she rewrapped his knee she asked, "Why would someone want to kill you? You seem like such a nice boy."

Link shrugged his shoulders. "I'm not really sure. It's someone's way of saying thank-you-for-saving-me-but-I-don't-like-you-hanging-around-my-daughter I guess."

"A little extreme if you ask me," she replied as she finished up.

Just then the girl stirred and moaned. Michelle beckoned them all over. Link got up and hobbled over. His knee was still sore. All of them, including the innkeeper who had come back with the water, leaned over her as she opened her eyes. She stared up at them in confusion.

The healer smiled down at her. "It's ok, I'm here to help you. My name's LaRissa. What's yours?"

But instead of answering she asked, "You're not going to hurt me?"

LaRissa shook her head. "Of course not, dear. Why would I do that?"

The girl tried to sit up. Michelle put her hands under her back and helped her. She peered around at them all. Now that she was awake, Link could feel there was something familiar about her. "Because," she replied, "everyone else does. I guess it's 'cause I'm different." Her gaze settled on Link. "No one wants to help me, ever."

And suddenly Link knew where he'd seen her before. _This is the girl from my dream!_

* * *

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	9. Change of Plans

_Knock knock_ "Zelda, are you in there?" Daphnes stood outside her room, banging repeatedly on the door. "Is everything okay?"

"Yes," came a weak voice, "I'm fine. I'll be down soon." Sighing, the king plodded off down the hallway, muttering about unruly children.

The door creaked open after him and Zelda peered out at his retreating figure. Quickly she shut the door again and turned around to face her two maids. "If you play your cards right, no one will ever know. Just make sure someone is always here to be 'me' and that my dad doesn't call in his own healer. You can't trust anyone."

The older of the two maids was nervous. "But," she worried, "what happens if they force their way in and discover it is not you?"

Zelda picked up her bag from the floor and slung it over her shoulder. "Then you tell them it was all my idea but that you don't know where I went. And make sure you cry a lot, my dad can't deal with weepy women. You'll be fine." She pulled on her cloak and slipped out the door, leaving her maids standing in distress.

‡

Zelda made quick business of sneaking down to the stable without being spotted. And it was easy, really, to steal a horse. The problem, she discovered when she got there, was that there weren't any horses to be stealing. _And just when I thought this would go off without a hitch._ Scowling, Zelda circled back the way she had come and out through the front gate towards the Market. Her ragged appearance helped convince the guards she didn't belong inside the castle grounds and they shooed her onward. Zelda vaguely wondered what would happen if they knew it was their princess they ushered onward with such scorn.

Once in the Market, Zelda cast around for a horse to steal. But as she wandered down the main street, she realized how impossible this would be. There were people _everywhere_. Zelda felt stupid, thinking she could get away with thievery in broad daylight. So she reconsidered her options. _Well, I certainly can't walk all the way to Sano. And I didn't bring enough money to buy a horse. They'd be suspicious anyway though._

As she pondered, Zelda wandered aimlessly through the streets of Hyrule Market. It was a strange pleasure not to be recognized by everyone. But it was not pleasant to be trampled upon. Zelda quickly found herself retreating from the busier streets. She walked through the backstreets, feeling that her ingenious escape plan was seriously flawed only because she couldn't actually escape.

Then she rounded a corner and almost ran into a loaded wagon. A horse that was tethered to the front of it whinnied at her. _Now's my chance!_ Zelda sprang forward with the full intention of stealing the horse, but as she leapt past the wagon a woman stood up from just next to the horse and literally ran into her, knocking them both to the ground.

"Oh gosh!" exclaimed the woman. "I beg your pardon miss, but I didn't see you there." Quickly and with much grace, the woman got her feet and offered Zelda a hand. As Zelda took it, she noticed the woman was dressed almost as filthily as she.

"Oh, it's quite alright, fair lady," Zelda quickly replied. Even before she finished her sentence she was mentally kicking herself. _Peasants don't talk like that!_

The woman, who was picking up a sack up from the ground, paused and turned to face Zelda fully. Obviously, she thought the same thing. "What brings a peasant like yourself to the Market? Surely you can't afford their lofty prices." She gestured down the street, towards the main market, with scorn.

"Well, no," Zelda answered sheepishly, "I was just passing through really."

"Mmm, " the woman replied. Once more, she looked Zelda up and down. "You wouldn't per chance looking for a ride out of this dump, would you?" She turned back to the cart and tossed the sack in. "I'm done with this place, heading out for a spell. I could use some company for as far as you want to go. What do ya say?"

Zelda couldn't believe her ears. "Really? Are you sincere?" She could barely contain her excitement. "That would be wonderful! When do you leave?"

The woman smiled. "Right now, actually. Hop aboard!" She extended her hand again to Zelda. The princess took it and was hoisted up onto the seat of the cart. The woman swiftly climbed up after her. Once settled, she glanced back at the cart, decided she had everything, and set the horse on its way. "Oh, before I forget, my name's Andrea. What's yours?"

"Mia. I'm Mia," Zelda answered. _Maybe this will work after all_.

‡

King Daphnes angrily stomped down the hall. It had been only five days since his daughter had become mysteriously ill. At first, he had been concerned. But now he was suspicious. It seemed alarming that Zelda, a healer herself, was unable to identify the sickness. He knew there had to be more to it, something he was missing. He truly doubted that she was naturally ill. That left three other explanations.

Benjamin was snoring loudly when King Daphnes banged open the door. The noise jolted Ben awake. "Your Majesty!" he exclaimed.

"Listen, this is important." Daphnes sat down at Ben's desk. "You hear all the talk amongst the court, correct?" Ben nodded. "I need to know if any of them are plotting against me in any way that involves Zelda."

Ben blinked. "With Zelda?" he replied dumbly, scratching his shiny head. "Well I don't think so. I mean they plot and scheme all the time... but nothing that ever involves her. She's an angel to them, you know that."

Daphnes frowned. "Then why is she sick? Who did this to her? Have you heard nothing? No speculations from anyone?"

"Ahh," Ben said with understanding. "You think she's being poisoned." He shook his head. "No, they would never do that to her. Although-" he continued, with sudden inspiration.

Daphnes knew what he was thinking though. "No, I doubt the killer's friends have come back. If they were trying to kill her, they would have just done it and gotten it over with."

"I suppose," Ben replied. Then he glanced sideways at the king. "What if she's not really sick? What if she's just.. I don't know, sad over Link leaving? Hmm?"

Daphnes shook his head, stating, "She's never been that melodramatic." But then he paused. "Perhaps I underestimate how much he manipulated her though."

Suddenly Daphnes came to a decision and stood up, pulling Ben to his feet as well. "We'll find out though, won't we? This quarantine has to end. Come Benjamin, let's find out if she's really ill!" Still holding Ben by the collar, the king marched back down the hallway.

When they reached her room, however, they found the door standing open. A maid was inside, fixing up the bed. Zelda was no where to be seen. "Maid," Daphnes demanded as he entered the room, "where is my daughter?"

"She's outside in the gardens," the maid stated simply.

"But her illness?" he urged.

The maid stopped and looked up at him nervously. "Her Highness is... feeling better. She thought some fresh air would do her good."

Daphnes turned away, back out into the hall. Ben looked anxiously at him. Daphnes said slowly, "I don't understand. Perhaps she was just ill."

Ben shrugged. "May I go now?"

‡

Outside in the garden, Zelda sat under her favorite tree with the other maid, who was extremely confused. After a bit of silence, the maid ventured cautiously, "You left to find Master Link. Yet obviously you haven't. Your Highness, I do not understand why you returned."

Zelda turned to the maid, putting her hand on her shoulder. "I'm not sure what you are talking about. Perhaps you should go in and lie down for a bit. It is a bit warm out here for how thickly you are dressed."

"What?" the maid responded. She glanced down at her clothes. "Well, alright." She got up hastily and left, glancing over her shoulder at the princess.

Zelda waited until she was out of sight before getting up herself. She walked cautiously down the path until she reached the small pool tucked away in the corner. Quickly looking around, she hustled over to it and, muttering under breath, lightly dipped one hand into the warm water.

The surfaced changed. Instead of reflecting the morning sunshine, it showed a dimly lit wooded glade. A dark face swam into view. "Well? What happened?"

Zelda shook her head. "I don't know. As far as I can tell she took off a couple days ago. The sickness was a ruse she created herself. I suppose it made my transition very smooth, but still-" she glanced around again, "-I'm concerned about what will happen if she attempts to return."

The face in the water laughed. "Don't be silly. If Princess Zelda is wandering lost in the woods, my agents will pick her up. A minor change of plans, really. I will contact you once we've caught her, and then you can make your move against King Daphnes." The face laughed again. "Usurping the Hylian throne will be too easy with their hero out of the picture. Now go."

Zelda smiled crookedly before removing her hand from the pool. Instantly the image changed back to the sunny sky. Casually she drifted away from the pool and left the garden. The guards bowed to her, holding the castle door open as she passed.

* * *

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	10. The Right Thing to Do

"What is with people these days?" LaRissa asked the air. "Why does every nice child deserve to die?" With the immediate threat gone, they had retired to a guest room at the back of the inn. The elf healer was helping Link again. Apparently the poison was proving to be more of a problem than even she anticipated.

Michelle sat across the room with the girl on the bed. Evan stood in the corner, looking out through the window. "Well there must be an explanation." he commented.

Michelle rolled her eyes. "Yes, because every action is reasonable."

"I didn't say it was reasonable, " he snapped.

"Well," the girl offered, her eyes flicking between them, "it doesn't change the fact that you are the first people I've ever met who have tolerated me."

Even shook his head. "That's not what I meant. I'm talking about your, um, _condition_. There must be an explanation for it and why it inspires people to do the things they do." He gestured at Link. "Take him, for example. He saved his kingdom and now his king thanks him by trying to kill him. I am sure there is an explanation, although what it is I do not know."

"You know," the healer commented to the girl, "if I knew more about how it happened, I might be able to help." Everyone in the room turned to her, waiting.

The girl took a deep breath. "Well, ok," she began. "I guess I should start by properly introducing myself. My name's Kit. I'm a hobbit from Sano. Less than two weeks ago I was banished from my village. They said my 'condition' had become a problem. I've been running ever since. That's really all there is to tell." Finished, she pulled her self back farther onto the bed and watched everyone's reaction.

Link stared hard at her. _Less than two weeks ago? Isn't that when me and Evan were leaving? So that would mean-_

"You're a hobbit?" Evan asked, coming away from the window to look more closely at her. "Then you are not as young and innocent as I first thought. That would make you-" He got right up into her face. "- about my age. Eighteen years?"

Kit pulled back farther. "Y-yes. That's right."

"Eighteen?!" Link exclaimed. "But you look younger than me!"

Evan rolled his eyes. "Have you never met a hobbit before? Never seen the little folk?"

"No. I haven't even heard of them. But still, it's just weird. No offense Kit," Link added. Kit nodded towards him, scooting out to the edge of the bed again now that Evan was out of her face.

"Have you always been this way?" LaRissa asked.

"Yes" she replied. "And I-"

But Link cut her off. "No you haven't."

She almost seemed to flinch at his words. LaRissa glared at him, wondering why he was intentionally upsetting her. Drawing her knees up to her chest, Kit asked, "What makes you say that?"

"Because I've seen you before, not long ago," Link explained, "and you definitely didn't have those ears then."

"Oh come on," Evan said, rolling his eyes again. "How could you possibly have seen her before? This is your first time traveling outside of Hyrule and you said you'd never even _heard_ of hobbits."

"I saw her in a dream," Link answered defensively. "The night before we left, as a matter of fact." He turned back to Kit. "You were sinking in a well and I tried to get you out, but you pulled me in, scratching my hand." He held up his left hand and showed them the healing scars. "You asked me to help you before we were both swallowed by the darkness."

Evan scowled. "And you scratching yourself in your sleep is proof of this?" Link scowled back. "Anyway, that's ridiculous. A dream is no indication for any fact concerning a girl you hadn't met yet."

"But it's true." All eyes turned back to the girl. "He tells the truth. I had the same dream two weeks ago. That was the night my life changed. I lied about it, I haven't always been this way." She dropped her eyes.

Michelle wrapped her arms around the girl. "But why would you lie about that?"

"Because I didn't want you, the only kind people I've met since, to know that I really _have_ been cursed." Her eyes flicked up briefly to their faces, lingering on Link's.

He kept her gaze. "Kit, I'm cursed in my own special way too. Obviously, otherwise we wouldn't have shared the same dream. Besides, how am I suppose to help you if won't admit you need my help?"

"Oh, by the goddesses!" Evan gasped from the corner. "Link, need I remind you that _your king is trying to kill you_? Don't you think you should return to Hyrule and deal with that, now that you're healed?"

"Well he's not fully healed yet," LaRissa began. "He needs-"

"Fine. _Once_ you're healed." Evan stressed. "We do not have time to go galavanting around the country-side looking for Nayru-knows-what with this harlot. And why? Because you had a _dream_?"

Link jumped to his feet, instantly outraged. "Well, I never asked you to come, Mr. Cynical!"

"Cynical? I'm being objective! Dreams should not rule your life, that's how you get killed!"

"I will have you know that my dreams can be extremely prophetic and that they make all the difference in life-or-death situations! If I'm suppose to help this _sweet lady_ then I shall, because it is the right thing to do."

"Regardless, you do not have time for it! You need to return to Hyrule!"

"Returning to Hyrule would only help to fuel Daphnes insane plot against me! Instead of waiting weeks to find out his plan failed, he'd be able to bombard me day after day. Now _that_ is foolish. Besides, I still need to find out who was trying to kill Zelda!"

Evan fumed silently for a second, as he had run out of arguments. Finally he threw his hands in the air in frustration. "Then I'm done with you, you silly boy!" He stomped from the room, slamming the door behind himself.

Link sat down in a huff. "And good riddance!"

‡

So Link decided to continue his journey to Sano, now with the added intention of discovering who or what had cursed Kit. With Evan out of the picture, Michelle agreed to travel with them. She said she'd grown attached to Link. LaRissa decided to stay on as well, seeing as Link's knee was taking constant medical attention. Within the hour everything was packed and ready to go. When they returned to where Epona was tethered, Link discovered to his dismay that Evan had kept Chester.

"Well that's his mode of travel." Michelle pointed out. "You didn't really expect him to leave it, did you?"

Link shrugged. "I suppose not. But Chester _is_ a Hylian horse. He doesn't belong to Evan. Besides, we could have used him." He briefly glanced down at Kit.

Kit tugged gently on his sleeve. "But Master Link, I can't ride a full grown horse by myself."

Link chuckled. "Oh, I know. You'll be riding with me." He glanced up at the elves. "It's just that this is not exactly the company I started out with. If we do happen to pick up another traveler, it would be nice to have a pack horse at least." He sighed as he unhitched Epona. "I think we'll be fine for the time being, though. Let's get going." Link climbed up into the saddle. Michelle helped Kit up. Then the two elves mounted their own horses and the four of them trotted out of Spikesville.

Traveling with three girls was definitely a different experience. They talked non-stop. Link found it relaxing though. After all his one-sided conversations and heated arguments with Evan, he was glad to be able to just ride and listen. For the most part, it was pleasant traveling. His knee was still sore and every so often they had to stop so LaRissa could tend to it. As night approached, Link confessed to himself that he would have made better time if Evan was still around.

"This looks like as good a place as any," he announced. "Let's set up camp here." They were stopped at a small glade just off the road. Link slid down from Epona and then helped Kit down. Immediately he started unpacking Epona.

Kit stood next to him and watched him. "Is there anything I can do to help?" she asked tentatively.

Link smiled. "Well, not much. Tell you what," he grabbed a bedroll and a blanket and handed them to her. "these are yours. Pick a spot and then why don't you go find some firewood. Do you know what kind of wood to look for?"

"Dry?" she guessed.

Link chuckled. "Yea. And as big as you can carry." He turned back to Epona and started to loosen her saddle.

Kit, not wanting to be useless, dumped the blanket and bedroll on the ground a few feet away and then hurried into the forest. She disappeared quickly into the trees as the light continued to fade. Michelle watched her go, then glanced over at Link. He continued to unpack.

Casually she walked over to him. "Do you think it wise to let her go off on her own?" she asked. "I mean, we haven't even known her for a day. She might get lost or get into trouble."

Link didn't look up as he responded. "I haven't known you for an entire day either, but I trust you. Besides, she's not a little girl, remember? She just looks like one."

Michelle pursed her lips. "Still. As far as I can tell, these last two weeks have been her first spent outside her village. She's not a traveler, she just doesn't have the instincts."

"She needs to be given the chance to learn them then." Link finished removing the saddled and set it on the ground. "I mean, come on," he said, turning to face her, "what could possibly happen? It's just firewood."

"_AAAAAAHH_! NOO! Let me GO!"

Both of them whirled around. "That was Kit!" Link gasped. He drew his sword and started running towards the woods.

But Michelle was faster as her horse was still saddled. She leapt up and spurred it forward. It crashed through the trees, whining wildly. She quickly left Link behind, who was feeling the sting of his injury. He followed her trail through the woods slower than he would have liked. Soon enough he came upon a small clearing.

A pile of wood lay scattered on the ground.

* * *

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	11. The Chase

Link crouched down, sheathing his sword, and looked at the undergrowth. He saw two sets of tracks: horse hooves and hobbit feet. _Michelle and Kit_._ But where's her assailant?_ Carefully, Link crawled around on his hands and knees, ignoring the pain shooting up his right leg. He followed Michelle's tracks to the other side of the clearing. She seemed to have left in the general direction that Kit's tracks lead. _Except these tracks are coming _into_ the clearing. Michelle went the wrong way!_ Link turned around and followed the footprints back to the strewn wood.

Then he heard snapping twigs. He looked up to see who was approaching.

"Find anything yet?" LaRissa asked as she emerged from the trees. She held her skirts up and very lightly crossed the clearing towards him. Link watched her feet, noticing how they barely left any imprint at all

He turned back to the dirt in front of him. "I'm pretty sure she was attacked by someone, but I don't see any tracks. Look here," he pointed to a deeper depression. "It looks like she tried to run."

"She didn't make it very far," the healer commented. "Looks like the footprints end here. They must have picked her up."

Link shook his head. "I don't think so. If they were an elf like you, they could travel lightly. But picking up a small girl, however small she may be, would add extra weight. And Michelle came crashing through those trees." He gestured back the way they'd come. "They would have had to run to avoid her." He stood up. "I don't care who you are, you can't flee and leave absolutely no tracks."

"Well," she ventured, "maybe Michelle did spot him and is heading the right way. Shouldn't we follow?"

"Nah," he said, "she would have caught up to him by now. We'd be hearing the fight, if nothing else."

They both paused and listened. The night wind blew through the trees. An owl hooted somewhere. Distantly they heard a horse whiny. LaRissa jumped at it. "That's just Epona," Link stated simply.

LaRissa relaxed. "So what happened then? Where'd they go?"

Link crouched down again, studying the ground. "I don't know. If I had better light I might be able to see something more."

LaRissa leaned over next to him and snapped her fingers. Instantly, a small blue flame appeared. It cast a blue-purple light over the ground. "Does this help?"

Link glanced up at her. "What kind of healer are you?"

"One who normally travels alone," she answered grimly.

Link thanked her, then looked back at the ground. At first nothing new appeared. Lightly, he ran his fingers over the ground by Kit's last prints. Then he twisted sideways, trying to wrap his mind around the situation. "If I was grabbing a hobbit, I'd do it from behind. So I'd be standing... here." He moved slightly over. LaRissa brought the light closer. "Ah-ah! You see that?" He pointed to a flat space.

"No. What am I looking for?" she asked.

"Light indentations around that. Someone stood here. In boots." Straining his eyes, Link peered around the space. "I don't see any others though." He looked farther away from the boot prints. "Not even for a big strider."

Link sat back, pondering. LaRissa let the light go out. "Are you saying he didn't move his feet? He just appeared here, grabbed her, and disappeared?"

Link nodded and stood. "It's the only explanation. And it also means that Michelle is going to find nothing."

LaRissa shook her head. "I've seen amazing things in my time, but teleporting is not one of them. Trust me. My fellow clerics went crazy over mastering it before I left. It's just not possible. The sheer amount of energy required is not something an individual can-"

At that moment, the distinct sound of metal grating against metal could be heard far off. Without hesitating a moment, Link turned sharply and sprang forward towards it. However, before he had made it two feet, a blur of light suddenly started to grow out of the air next to him. He blinked hard and stepped back from it just as the light took form. Blinded by the intensity of it, it took him a moment to realize that it had materialized into two wriggling people.

"MMmph! Mef me DHO!" Kit bit down hard on her abductor's hand. With a yowl he withdrew it sharply. Kit tried to get away from him, but his other arm was still wrapped securely around her waist.

Link darted forward, jumping into them and knocking all three of them to the ground. He punched the man where ever he could reach until, in the confusion, the attacker let go of Kit. She rolled away quickly, pulling at Link to do the same. The man, realizing he'd lost his prey, reached his hand into a bag strapped to his belt, kicking at Link. "Look out Link, he's going to run again!" Kit shouted.

"Not if I can help it!" Link shouted back. Link grabbed one of his legs. The man kicked harder than ever to loosen him. Then suddenly LaRissa descended upon them both, wielding a branch. She thwacked the man soundly in the head once or twice. He thrashed out with his free hand, catching her ankles, and pulled hard. She fell backwards with a yell. Then, wasting no time, he teleported again.

The sensation was new for Link, even though he'd done his fair share of magical travel. The pull at the core of his being was so smooth and yet jagged at the same time. It seemed to last forever, yet when it was over Link knew it had taken less than a second.

Thankfully, the light wasn't there to blind him this time. He let go of the struggling man and rolled away. He kept still as the man labored to stand up and peered around himself in the darkness, looking for Link. He was breathing hard and seemed to be having trouble keeping his balance. _All that teleporting must be tiring him out_.

Then Michelle came crashing through the trees behind both of them. She leapt from the horse onto the man, knocking him to the ground. He flipped over and crawled backwards away from her. Link saw his hand shakily going for the bag again. "Grab his arms!" He yelled as he jumped up.

For a moment Michelle did nothing, obviously contemplating how Link had gotten there. Then Link was tackling the man again, trying to keep his hand out of the bag. Michelle, seeing what was happening, quickly came up with a better plan. Deftly she leaned over them both and cut the bag from him. He gave a frightened squeal and stopped struggling for a moment.

Link, sighing, sat back and glared at him. "Now what-" he began, but he didn't get to finish. The man sat up suddenly in convulsions. In the darkness, Link could see white stuff coming out of his mouth. Alarmed, he grabbed the attacker and tried to help him. But it was too late.

Michelle pulled Link away, letting the dead man slump to the ground. Link glanced up at her face. Even in the darkness he could tell she was just as alarmed as he was. She held up the bag in her hand. "I guess it must have been tied to his life somehow," she numbly commented.

Link took it from her and stuck his hand inside, feeling around. "Weird, it's empty," he said. Briefly he looked inside before tipping it over and shaking. Nothing came out.

"Well what did you expect, a bleeding heart?" she asked as she rolled the corpse over, so it was face down.

Link continued to dig around inside the bag. "Actually, I was trying to figure out how he was teleporting." He pulled his hand out and peered inside again as Michelle glanced up sharply at him. "The secret must have died with him though."

"Teleporting? What do you mean?"

Quickly Link explained about the tracks he'd found and what they implicated. Then he told how the man had actually appeared and that the bag seemed to be the key to his extraordinary ability. As he finished his explanation, LaRissa and Kit appeared cautiously from the foliage.

They were relieved when they saw the attacker laying face down in the dirt. LaRissa wanted to inspect the situation more, but Kit tugged at her sleeve, begging to leave. Link agreed and, after collecting Michelle's horse, they made their way back to their half-set-up camp. Quickly they finished setting things up, had a bite to eat, and went to sleep. Everyone was thoroughly exhausted from the day's adventures.

‡

A dark figure sat hunched over a deep pool in a stone basin. The basin itself was ancient, sitting upon its ivy-covered pedestal. The glade in which both sat was dead quiet. Not even a breeze to move the grasses. The only other living soul present was a servant, standing ready.

Without stirring, the figure spoke. "Servant! Ready my steed. I fly within the hour."

The servant bowed low. "To hear is to obey, Mistress." Then he turned and hurried from the glade.

The woman remained seated at the basin. She glared into the waters. "Imbecile," she said to it. Her eyes flicked this way and that as she watched the water. Shapes seemed to move beneath its surface. Though they were murky at best, she could see them clearly. As she watched them, something made her snort with laughter. "I gave you the power to teleport, yet you still failed?" As she watched, the waters grew still and dark.

Gracefully she climbed from her chair. As soon as her boots touched the springy grass, a brisk breeze blew up. Pulling the hair from her face, she glanced back at the basin and sighed. "I suppose if you want something done right, you have to do it yourself," she commented to herself. "At least this way I can kill two birds with one stone." She chuckled as she left the glade. "Literally. Oh young Squire Link, you shall rue the day you crossed _my_ path."

* * *

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	12. Unexpected Visitors

The progress Zelda and Andrea had made during the past week was menial at best. Zelda felt frustrated. Andrea's go-getter personality had lit a fire of hope under Zelda, but that fire was barely smoldering now. From all of Andrea's big talk came little action. The woman procrastinated in everything, waiting until the absolute last minute to change the horse's shoes or stock more food. It made everything take that much longer. If Zelda didn't know any better, she would have guessed she was one of those unhasty woodelves.

As Zelda got up on their eighth day out, Andrea gave her the worst news yet. "A friend of mine lives around here, and I promised I'd stop by next time I was passing through." Andrea smiled sweetly. "I hope you don't mind, Mia."

Zelda fought hard to not grit her teeth as she responded. "Oh, not at all!" _Afterall, she doesn't really _know_ that I'm in a hurry. And I can't safely express it to her without blowing my cover._ "I love meeting new people."

"Oh good," Andrea sighed. "I was worried you wouldn't. Although I suppose I should warn you that she is a bit eccentric." She smiled again and then went back to her packing.

Zelda could have cried from frustration, but knew she needed to keep her cover going as long as possible. So silently, she finished her own packing and climbed onto the wagon with a smile. Andrea beamed back, snapping the reigns.

‡

To Andrea's credit, it only took them an hour or two to arrive at the friend's shack, and it really wasn't out of the way that much. To Andrea's dismay, the house appeared to be empty. She knocked on the rickety door several times, but no one answered.

"I don't think she's home," Zelda said after Andrea knocked a fourth time. "She may have gone to town or something."

"No, she rarely goes out until evening. And she never goes out this early. Ever." Andrea stood for a moment, surveying the door intensely. "I wonder if it's locked..."

"I don't think that's..." Zelda began, but it was too late. Andrea had already shoved the door open. She stepped into the gloom.

The first thing Zelda noticed was the smell. It was stale, as if no one had actually lived there in quite some time. Then her eyes adjusted to the windowless darkness of the single room shack. Things had been thrown haphazardly across the floor; clothes, books, broken dishes, and the bedspread. The mattress had been torn open and most of the stuffing ripped out. What was once a small chest of drawers had been reduced to splinters, the pieces then tossed into a corner. The cabinets on the wall all stood open and empty, the bottoms having been smashed out of a few of them.

Lastly, there were suddenly men, big burly husky men, leaping out of the shadows onto Andrea, who stood bewildered in the doorway. Zelda reacted instantly, grabbing Andrea and yanking backwards, even as Andrea began to spring forward. The result was both of them ending up in a heap on the ground and subsequently tripping the men as they spilled out of the shack.

As Zelda struggled to disentangle herself from the other woman, she could hear many of them swearing under their breath. When she was finally free she glanced around again, noticing that the men were just milling around, generally ignoring the girls. Carefully she got to her feet, Andrea following suit.

One of the bigger men, probably the leader now that Zelda thought about it, addressed them directly by spitting at them. "No good nobodies! What bidness you havin' here?" He glared at them, obviously expecting a response. Then suddenly his eyes widened. "Unless.. you know the little thief?"

Andrea started to open her mouth, an indignant look on her face, but Zelda elbowed her in the side to shut her up. "We thought it was empty. Honestly, we were just looking for somewhere to rest. We didn't mean to disturb you." Zelda stepped forward, making as if to leave, but the lumbering men had formed a circle around her and Andrea, trapping them against the shack.

"A likely story," the man spat again. "More 'n likely that you..." But he trailed off, staring hard at Zelda. She shifted uneasily beneath his gaze. She wasn't used to be looked at like that, like he was trying to penetrate her soul.

The other men watched him in turn. "What is it Boss?" one of them asked. "You look like you know her." He glanced back at Zelda. "Actually, I think I've seen her 'afore."

The boss nodded, he face relaxing somewhat Zelda felt her heart plummet. _Oh no! He recognizes me!_ "Yea, I have too," he said. Then he grinned wickedly. "An' she's gonna fetch us a pretty penny, aren't ya _your highness_?" He said the last two words with mocking grace, which was possibly much worse than if he had spat them out.

The other men stared for a moment and then, as realization dawned on them, they broke out laughing. Zelda scooted back around behind Andrea in fear and risked a glance up at the other woman's face.

But oddly enough, Andrea didn't look surprised. She didn't look scared either. In fact, she kind of looked annoyed still. "Well all that aside," she said crossly, putting her hands on her hips and blocking Zelda from view, "what are you doing ransacking Sabrina's house like this? I dare say she didn't _invite_ you to do so. So what gives you the right?"

This instigated more laughter amongst the men, but the leader waved for them to quiet. "Heh, figures you're the wretched thief's ally. Whatever. Once we deal with 'er," he jabbed a thumb at Zelda, "then you'll get your turn, don't you worry your pretty li'le head about it."

"But Boss, we won't have to bother with her once we have the reward mon-" another man started, but the leader rounded on him.

"Shadup, you idiot! I make the decisions 'round here, and I decided that the wench is gonna pay for stealin' from me. Don't you forget it! And when we find her, we'll tear her limb from-"

But at that moment Andrea suddenly rushed forward, dragging Zelda with her, and knocked hard into the leader. Completely caught off guard, he stumbled backwards, leaving a gap in the circle that Andrea and Zelda shot through.

"AFTER THEM!!" he shouted frantically.

Zelda, blood pounding in her ears, ran as fast as she could. But Andrea was still mostly dragging her along with an iron grip that Zelda hadn't thought the woman capable of. They reached the wagon faster than they should have and Andrea threw Zelda up onto it, following hastily. Zelda glanced back over her shoulder as Andrea snapped the reigns violently, sending the horse into a panic. At least 20 yards away the men were scrambling to catch up. Then the wagon lurched forward around a bend in the road and Zelda lost sight of them.

They thundered along in silence for awhile. Andrea took mazy paths through the woods, making new ones where necessary, and then doubling back. Zelda was only vaguely aware of where they were going. She watched the road behind them for any sign of the men, but never saw any.

Finally Andrea slowed the pace, giving the poor horse a chance to rest. Zelda let out a breathe that she hadn't realized she'd been holding and put her hands to her face, willing the pounding to go away. _I wish Link was here_, she thought dismally.

The wagon stopped abruptly. Zelda glanced up sharply at the road, expecting to see the men. But instead she met Andrea's serious gaze. Zelda waited for the inevitable shocked and outraged response.

"Are you okay?" Andrea asked simply.

Zelda was taken aback. "Uh, y-yes. Yes, I'm fine."

"Good," Andrea nodded. Then she twisted in her seat, glancing behind them. "We can't go back to the main road. They might be watching it. 'Course they could watch the back roads instead." She frowned. "I'm not very good at this sort of thing I'm afraid."

Andrea lost herself in thought for a moment, giving Zelda the opportunity to stare at her in bewilderment. _What's wrong with her? Does she not realize who I am?_

"Well," Andrea said, coming out of her thoughts, "I'd have a better idea of what to do if I knew where you going, Zelda."

Zelda opened her mouth to respond but closed it when she realized she'd just been addressed by her real name. She ended up just continuing to stare, not really sure how to respond.

"What?" Andrea asked, eyebrows raised. "You didn't seriously think I hadn't recognized you back in Hyrule Market?"

"Well you certainly didn't give any indication as to the contrary," Zelda responded, slightly annoyed now. "So you've known the whole time?"

Andrea shrugged. "More or less. But that doesn't really matter. The point is that you're running away from something and I need to know where to if I'm going to protect you on the way."

"Why'd you ever leave with me in the first place?" Zelda asked, realizing it was insulting for a subject to help put her in danger. "Doesn't that go against all sorts of Hylian laws?"

Andrea just laughed though. "Well it would if I fell under them. But I don't. I may have realized who you were, but you obviously don't know who I am."

If Zelda wasn't annoyed before, she sure was now. "Okay, so who are you?"

Andrea bowed awkwardly from her seated position. "I am Andorniel, a blacksmith of the Elves." She made a face. "Not that any of them would want me to claim that."

Zelda allowed herself only a brief moment of surprise before remembering their mad dash towards the wagon, realizing that only an elf could move that fast. "That makes a lot of sense actually." Then she shook her head. "I can't believe I didn't see it before!"

"Most don't." Zelda glanced up, catching a glimpse of hurt in Andrea's eyes. Then the elf was picking up the reigns again and smiling. "So you still haven't told me where you're headed."

"Sano. I'm going to Sano."

* * *

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	13. Another Change of Plans

Link was first to wake the next morning. The sun was just beginning to creep above the horizon as he lazily stoked the fire back to life. Taking his time, he meandered over to where Epona stood and stroked her mane. Then he found his pack and brought it back to the fire with him, digging through it for a suitable breakfast. Just as he pulled some wrapped meat from it, a shadow passed over him. A large one.

He twisted around to get a better look at whatever it was that was blocking the sun, but his twist was cut short as his entire body erupted in pain. He screamed in agony and fell back. His senses barely registered the girls jumping to their feet, but then they too were drowned out as a figure appeared above him.

A gleaming blade materialized in its hand. Link knew what was coming but couldn't focus, couldn't move. The pain was already too much. The blade stabbed down through him, his body convulsing into an upright position.

Link sat on his bedroll panting, sweat blurring his vision. The sun was just beginning to creep above the horizon as he jumped to his feet and started kicking the girls awake.

"What in Din's name do you think you're doing?" Michelle demanded angrily.

"We have to move. Now. Get up and grab your sword," he responded as he hastily pulled Kit to her feet.

She blinked groggily at him, unable to comprehend what was happening. "Wha-? But it's not morning yet." A yawn forced itself upon her and she stood still rubbing her eyes.

"Move!" Link insisted and started shoving them all towards the trees.

LaRissa turned to protest but stopped suddenly, staring at something behind Link. He couldn't help but turn and see what had stolen her attention so thoroughly. The others turned too.

In the distance, barely visible against the sun, was what appeared at first glance to be a dark cloud. Only the cloud was moving independently from the others. And against the wind.

Link didn't have to push them this time to get them to hide in the trees. From where she crouched next to him, Link could feel Kit shaking in fear.

"What is that?" she managed to ask.

"I don't know," he said as he squinted at it. Then he glanced around their abandoned camp. "But whatever it is, it's not alone. There's a person too."

Michelle glanced sharply over at him. "How do you know that?"

"Because I do," was all he would say.

As they watched, the dark cloud continued to get bigger until its shadow enveloped the glade. Link held his breath, waiting for the person to appear. _Come on, where are you, you sneaky bastard?_

As if on cue, a figure appeared in a mist of dark smoke. The horses started abruptly. Link swore that Epona shot him an angry look, having been left behind. But he focused his attention on the figure instead and was startled when it pulled back its hood to reveal the red locks of a woman. For a second he wondered if this could possibly be the figure who meant to kill him. As soon as she turned her head, however, he was sure of it. The expression on her face was nothing short of murderous. She was turning around the glade, taking in the bedrolls, the horses, and the smoldering fire.

Something suddenly occurred to Link. Slowly he slid down further behind the bushes, pulling Kit with him. She was too scared to make a fuss. "Kit," he whispered, "have you ever seen that woman?"

Kit looked at him, then chanced a glance over the bush at the woman. When she turned back, the fear was ebbing from her face. "No, I don't think so," she whispered back.

"Good," he said softly. "That means she's here for me, not you." LaRissa, on Link's other side, leaned in front of him and gave him a pointedly quizzical look. "Hey," he whispered defensively, "it's a lot harder to protect someone else than to protect yourself." He leaned past the healer and stared at Michelle until he got her attention. All four of them huddled close together.

"You have a plan, I take it?" Michelle whispered to him.

"If you can call it a plan. LaRissa, take Kit and get out of here. I don't care where, just away. Michelle, I want you to go around the left side. I'll take right."

"You want to flank her?" the healer asked, skepticism evident even in her whisper.

Link cast her a sidelong look. "You have a better idea?"

"No," she admitted sheepishly.

"Then yes, in a sense, we're flanking her. Michelle don't you dare come out until I have her complete and utmost attention. I should warn you now this isn't going to be pretty."

Michelle rolled her eyes. "No wonder Ervandielnar doesn't like you. This plan doesn't exactly inspire confidence."

"Just hit her, and hit her hard, okay? I'll take it from there."

As Kit and LaRissa slipped away, Link and Michelle peeked over the bushes at the woman one last time. By now she had angrily kicked everything around the site and was currently glaring at the horses. The hero and the elf exchanged an uncertain glance, then turned and went their separate ways around the clearing.

Link crept as silently as he could through the trees. He was totally positive he had given himself away when he'd stepped on a twig, but the strange woman didn't seem to notice. As far as Link could tell she was trying to mind meld with Epona. As he settled into a good position, he briefly wondered if it was possible that she wouldn't notice him until it was too late. But even as he had the thought, he pushed it aside. _Yea right. She probably knows what's going on and is just playing dumb. Farore knows I would._

He sat still for a second and tried to bolster his courage, knowing that Michelle was probably waiting impatiently across the glade. As much as he enjoyed her company, she reminded him of Evan sometimes. _Maybe that's just elves..._

Suddenly the woman snapped her head up, glaring fiercely in Kit and LaRissa's direction. Not pausing to wonder how she knew about them, Link launched himself from his hiding place. All that mattered at that moment was getting as close to her as possible. He'd only made it ten feet before a familiar pain enveloped him. He resisted the urge to cry out this time, knowing that any second it would end.

That second seemed to last an eternity. When it finally ended, Link found himself curled up in a ball on the ground. For a moment he couldn't remember what he was doing or what had been so important. Then he heard a gasp from somewhere close by. Glancing up, he saw Michelle stumbling backwards from the woman, a look of shock and fear plastered across her face. The woman, who obviously hadn't had her head bashed in like originally planned, raised her arms menacingly towards the elf.

Link wasted no time getting to his feet and tearing the Master Sword from its sheath. He jumped forward with a yell, forcing the woman to focus on him once more. This time he could feel her gathering magic, probably to cripple him with pain once more. But he was barreling down on her before she could finish the spell. Cursing, she hopped backwards and reached into her cloak. The Master Sword whistled harmlessly past her, but Link let the momentum carry him around for a second strike.

By then it was too late. She met his blade with hers. For a moment they were face to face, pushing against each other. Link opted not to stare into her blazing eyes, instead looking past her at Michelle. The elf was standing a few feet away looking very concerned. Just standing there. _Oh for Nayru's sake... Why isn't she helping me? What about let's-flank-the-bitch does she _not_ understand?_

Link's focus was abruptly brought back to the fight as the woman fell back again, causing Link to stumbled forward. He recovered just in time as the woman slashed out with her blade. He caught it against his own and twisted it away, then lashed out with his right foot. She neatly dodged his kick, countering with a kick of her own. As her foot collided with his left knee, Link thought he saw a glint of malice in her eyes. He ground his teeth together as pain shot up his leg and spun away from her.

She pressed her newfound advantage, slashing viciously at Link as he stumbled away from her. He was finding it increasingly difficult to keep up with her every blow. She was quickly wearing him out, that much was obvious. But for some reason she didn't seem to be tiring herself. If anything, she was actually getting stronger and faster as the fight progressed. But Link was starting to see patterns in the way she moved too. Specifically, a hole in her attack...

Link mustered a surge of strength and countered. He felt smug for a brief moment as he stepped inside her attack and stabbed at her. Unfortunately this seemed to be exactly what she was waiting for. She twisted around him as he plunged forward. Before Link was fully aware what was happening, she was behind him and wrapping her arm around his throat in a strangle hold. Their swords tangled uselessly together.

Link struggled fiercely for a second, but to no avail. Her grip was like iron. The next second she was bashing her knee into his, taking the fight right out of him as pain shot up his leg again. He sagged against her, trying to regain his footing. He could see Michelle across the glade staring helplessly at him.

"It's no use Hero," the woman whispered in his ear. He tried to jerk away from her, startled by how smooth her voice was, but her grip only tightened. "Tell me," she continued, "before I end your pitiful existence, where are you hiding that brat of a princess?"

Link opened his mouth to tell her to go to hell, but stopped as he realized what she was actually asking him. "Wait, what? Are you stupid?" he demanded. He felt her stiffen in irritation.

"I ask the questions here, not you." But there was hesitation in her voice now.

Link did his best to roll his eyes dramatically. "Well if your question wasn't retarded, then maybe I'd actually take you seriously. Where the hell do you think she is?"

She responded by tightening her grip on his throat, momentarily cutting of his air supply. He gasped and choked for a second before she relaxed it a little bit. "I don't know, you tell me," she snapped angrily.

It was hard for Link to suppress a smile. After everything that had worked out so right for her, he was glad she wasn't getting her way now. It was also buying him time to think of some way out of this mess. "Well good little princesses stay safe and snug in their castles, obviously. Maybe you should have thought about that before chasing after me." As he said it though, it finally occurred to him _why_ she had tracked him down. Zelda obviously wasn't at home anymore. And he wasn't there to protect her.

This realization must have been written across his face plain as day because she immediately sucked in an annoyed breathe. "You've got to be kidding me. You don't know a goddess-damned thing, do you?"

Before he was able to respond, she pushed him away from her, tripping him as she did so. He fell hard into the dirt and tried to spin around to defend himself. She towered over him for a second. With the gleaming sword in her hand, the image was all too familiar.

But instead of striking, she stood stock still for a moment. She was thinking about something very hard. Then suddenly she turned with a flourish and disappeared in the same black mist she had arrived in.

‡

High above the clouds, the woman fumed silently to herself. She'd meant to kill him and take the princess. Two birds with one stone. But now both birds were still alive and free. Her trip had been a complete waste. _No, not completely_, she amended. _Now that he knows she isn't 'safe and snug', he'll seek her out. I have no doubt of that. And when he does, I'll be there._

* * *

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	14. Lost and Found

Link struggled awkwardly to his feet, trying to put as much weight as possible on his right leg. He didn't need to glance down at his other knee to know it was blood soaked and getting worse. Grinding his teeth, he turned and limped his way over to where Michelle lay. He tried in vain not to think about what had just happened. _Why didn't she kill me when she had the chance? And Zelda! Where in Din's name did you run off to? No, focus. I can't think about that now. First Michelle. And why she didn't help me._

But when he reached the elf, the answer was obvious. She was stiff as a board and staring straight up at the sky, still wearing the same concerned expression he'd glimpsed earlier. In truth, she looked like a statue someone had carelessly knocked over. _Great. Magic_. _Why does that not surprise me? _Carefully, he dropped onto the grass next to her. _Maybe LaRissa will feel bad for abandoning us and come back_, he thought glumly._ I sure as hell don't want to chase after her now._

Epona gently nuzzled the back of his head, a bag clamped in her teeth. Twisting, Link patted her nose and then took the bag from her. It was LaRissa's, full of her healing supplies. Link couldn't help but smile a little. "Thanks girl." After digging a bit, Link found a roll of clothe and began wrapping his knee. _Not ideal, but it'll have to do._

Then he turned back to Michelle. He felt bad for leaving her, but didn't know what else to do under the circumstances. "I'll be back soon," he said, more to himself than to her. Idly, he reached out to brush a strand of hair off of the elf's face.

As soon as his fingers brushed her skin, her whole body came to life and she gasped for air. The next second she was on her feet, spinning towards Link, who was trying not to get stepped on. She caught herself before tripping over him and started to say something. All that came out was a groan, though, as she suddenly clutched her head and sat down again.

"Hey, are you okay?" Link asked leaning in to getting a better look at her. He didn't see any bruises or cuts on her head. All the same, he was glad she was moving again.

Michelle peered at him from between her fingers. "How did you get all the way over here so fast? And where'd she go?" Gingerly she looked around the clearing.

"She cast some kind of spell on you right before I attacked her. I bet you don't remember anything after that, do you?"

"She... countered my attack. And then..." She glanced down at Link's bandaged knee. When she looked up again, shame had replaced the confusion in her face. "How long was I out?"

"Long enough to almost get me killed," he replied simply. "But I'm okay!" he added quickly, seeing the shame turn to remorse and guilt. "Lucky for us, though, I don't think she planned on letting me live. Now we can-"

"She was going to kill you and that's _lucky_?" Michelle exclaimed. She leaned forward and stared into his face. "Are you sure you're okay? She didn't rattle your brains or anything?"

Link roughly pushed her away. "Yes I'm fine! If she had planned on me living, do you think I would have been able to break the spell on you so easily?" She looked unconvinced still. "Why I _am_ still alive, I don't know. But we can't worry about that now. We need to find LaRissa and Kit."

"Alright, Gimpy, if you say so. But next time we're faced with an opponent we know nothing about, let me make the battle plan, okay? Yours didn't work out so well." She stood and helped Link to his feet.

"Except next time, we'll know not to underestimate her."

‡

An hour later, Michelle and Link had packed the entire campsite up, mounted their horses (with LaRissa's in tow), and set out to find the other two girls. Link wasn't sure if it was good or bad that the trail was so easy to follow. They had certainly focused on just getting away. But Link was worried. With everything he had to think about, his mind kept coming back to the moment just before he'd jumped from hiding to attack the strange woman. The moment where she'd suddenly _known_ LaRissa and Kit were running away and in what direction. _If she decided to go after them instead of fighting me..._

"Hey, I'm talking to you!" Michelle had slowed her pace and was riding up alongside him, looking very annoyed.

"Hmm, what? Sorry, my mind was elsewhere," he said apologetically.

Michelle snorted in response. "Well anyway, I thought you might like to know, since you're _obviously_ not paying attention, that we aren't the only people to have followed this trail since the others came crashing through here."

Link blinked at her as what she said sunk in. "What. No. Show me."

Michelle tugged on her reigns lightly and then stepped from her horse. Bending over, she peered at the ground for a few seconds, twisting this way and that. Suddenly she pointed. Carefully Link dismounted and studied the ground she'd indicated. A small light footprint was evident against the deep ruts caused by LaRissa and Kit running.

"Shit," Link swore, as he turned and struggled back into his saddle. "We've wasted so much time. We need to go. Now."

Michelle gracefully climbed into her own saddle. "Remember when I said to leave the planning to me when we come up against something questionable? Well this is one of those times. We don't want to run headlong into somethi-"

"Michelle," Link said, cutting her off, "remember when I said that I didn't know why that woman stopped attacking me? Remember when she seemed to know where Kit and LaRissa were before I attacked her? What if she figured it was more worth her time catching and maybe killing them instead of fighting me?"

Michelle's face went blank. "Why didn't you tell me this sooner?"

"I'd hoped I was jumping to conclusions."

Michelle turned her horse back down the path, but stayed where she was. "Regardless, we don't want to rush into anything. It may be a trap. It might not be her," she said, gesturing at the ground.

"Or we might be too late," Link retorted. "So what are we going to do? Your call."

For a moment, the elf didn't move but to bite her lower lip. Finally she glanced at Link, then back down the path. It was a hard decision, one Link didn't trust himself to make at the moment.

"We move quickly," she said at last. "Keep your eyes peeled. At the first sign of... well anything, we slow down and pick our way carefully. Stealth is of the essence. Don't do anything stupid."

Link turned Epona to face down the path. "Any more rules I should know about?" he joked humorlessly. Michelle said nothing as she urged her horse forward, Link quickly following. Together they raced through the underbrush, not a word passing between them for almost twenty minutes.

Twenty heart-pounding minutes. At every turn Link expected to see the woman standing over the still form of LaRissa or Kit. Or both. Every bird squawking at their passage sounded like someone yelling in the distance. Despite what it was doing to him emotionally, Link allowed himself to become immersed in the sounds around them. Every now and again the elf would slow to study the ground or the foliage they passed, then race on again.

"Wait," she said, after such an inspection. Yanking the reigns, she came to a dead stop and jumped down from the saddle.

Link pulled to a stop a few feet away. "What is it?"

"I'm not sure," she said as she crouched low to the ground. "It almost looks like they doubled back here."

"Who? Kit and LaRissa?" Link asked hopefully, dismounting Epona and hobbling over to her.

The elf shook her head, but didn't say anything. She continued to stare at the ground, as if waiting for it to reveal it's secrets. As Link bent to peer over her shoulder, a familiar dark shadow passed over them. Instinctively they both twisted back-to-back, drawing their swords in one fluid motion. Link squinted up at the sky, thanking the cover of the trees and cursing them for blocking his view at the same time. He couldn't see what had caused the shadow, but he didn't really need to. For a second, he almost panicked.

Link felt more than saw the swirl of black smoke through the trees just in front of him. A weight in his chest lifted as he struggled forward. If the woman was here, then Kit and LaRissa were okay. They had to be okay.

"Link, wait!" Michelle called behind him. Link ignored her as he hurried into the trees. He bent all of his focus in front of him, trying to use all of his sense to find the woman.

Too late he heard the brush rustling beside him. Too late he spun to face it, and on the wrong leg. His knee gave out and he toppled backwards as someone sprang from the bushes. He tried to roll sideways, out of the way, but met a tree trunk.

There was a thud above him and a loud "Ow!" He scrambled quickly to his feet, sword in hand. Two people were tangled on the ground in front of him. On seeing him standing, one of the mjumped up. But even as she did so, the fierceness of her stance faded.

"Oh," she stated, looking Link up and down. "You're not the thief." Her brow furrowed and she cocked her head, listening for something. She was a tall elf with hair just as red as the woman's. As she slowly turned her head, her gaze fell on Link once more. "Oh! Are you alright?"

"What?" Link asked. He looked down at himself. He _was_ looking pretty disheveled. "Ah, no I'm fine," he lied. His knee was bleeding again.

"You don't look fine." The other person, another redheaded woman, had righted herself on the ground and was studying Link with a critical eye. "Although I suppose you're not dead. That's something."

"Uh, yea. Thanks?"

The first woman glanced sharply down at her. "Excuse me? I wasn't-"

"Link! There you are!" Michelle pushed her way through the trees to them. She took in the other two woman. "What happened?"

"Ah HA!" the strange elf shouted suddenly. She reached behind Michelle and pulled into view a small person, about Link's height. He squealed and tried to escape her, but it was no use. She smiled triumphantly. "At last!"

"_What_ is going on?" Michelle exclaimed.

‡

As it turned out, Ckessalene, the tall elf, had mistaken Link for the short person, who was a hobbit named Tedyk. Tedyk had been fleeing from her because he thought she meant him harm. It took Ckessalene a good ten minutes to explain that she didn't. While he calmed down somewhat, he still looked like a frightened rabbit about to run. Tatyana, the other woman, had been lost in the woods. She'd heard Link and Michelle's horses and figured the road must have been in that direction.

"But if this isn't the road, then what are you doing out here?" Tatyana asked crossly. She stood on the path, still quite lost.

Michelle said simply, "We could ask you the same thing, _stranger_." She met Tatyana's gaze evenly. "The road is that way," she pointed back down the trail, "and I will thank you to keep your nose out of our business." Apparently done with the conversation, she helped Link to sit down and began rummaging for the healing supplies.

Ckessalene leaned over the elf's shoulder, looking concerned. "How did that happen?" she asked, indicating his knee.

"It's not your fault, if that's what you're thinking," Link said with an encouraging smile. "It's a couple days old."

"And you haven't let it heal," Tatyana remarked. There was an odd tone to her voice, like she was trying to be helpful but silently laughing at Link.

Michelle glared up at her. "Why are you still here?"

Tatyana smirked. "Or maybe your guardian here just sucks at healing."

"What? Michelle's not-"

Tatyana abruptly pushed Michelle aside, who gave an indignant 'Hey!', and knelt before Link. "Let someone who _knows_ what they're doing help." She studied the wound for a second, Link watching nervously. "Ooooooh. I see," she mused. "Very clever. Well I suppose, Michelle was it?" Tatyana turned to face the elf, "that I should apologize. No one of non-magical skill would be able to heal this." Michelle scowled at her. Tatyana turned back to Link. "But you, my... uh, friend, are in luck."

Without a word further, or even consent from Link, the strange woman began working her magic. She mumbled to herself, reciting the spell, as a light began to swirl from her outstretched hands to Link's bleeding knee. As it wound its way around him, Link's face twisted in pain.

Michelle grabbed Tatyana and shook her. "Hey! What are you doing?" But the woman only shrugged her off, concentrating on her magic.

Ckessalene patted Michelle's shoulder reassuringly. "Some things don't come easily." Together they watched as Link cried out in pain.

* * *

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